Pirates of the Caribbean: The Bermudan Treasure
by la z boy
Summary: Jack, Will, Elizabeth and the crew must find the legendary treasure of the Bermuda Triangle and defeat the bloodthirsty Blackbeard. Full Summary Inside. R&R!
1. Surprise Attack

NOTE: This is the second in my "Pirates of the Caribbean" stories. If you haven't read my first one, "At World's End", you may want to do so just in case.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Bermudan Treasure

Two years have passed since Jack's father was rescued from World's End. Jack and his father now command the Black Pearl II while Will & Elizabeth are happily married in Port Royal. Everything seems perfect.

But when Jack and his crew come into possession of a mysterious treasure map, an old acquaintance informs Jack that it's a map to find the mystical treasure of the Bermuda Triangle. The legend of the triangle is well known; every pirate ship that sails into it disappears. The treasure of the triangle is said to have been compiled by the three women gods who created the triangle as a symbol of how powerful feminism can be. The old belief that a woman is a bad luck omen when on a pirate ship turns out to be a misconstrued fact as legend says the presence of a woman aboard a ship is the key to sailing through the triangle's threshold unharmed. Having discovered all this, Jack sets out to find the closest woman friend he has: Elizabeth Turner.(next)

Jack eventually persuades Will & Elizabeth to accompany him to the triangle. However, when they reach the triangle, our fellow pirates make a shocking discovery. That discovery being that the triangle is actually a prison for the fools who have attempted to sail into the triangle. What's more is that the prison is headed over by a merciless shape-shifting pirate crew who have sworn to protect the treasure. And the captain of the crew is none other than the bloodthirsty Blackbeard.

Now, Jack, Will & Elizabeth must find a way to free the prisoners and obtain the treasure before time runs out for not only the prisoners...but for them as well.

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Chapter 1

Night had fallen over the shallow waters of Bermuda. Everything had turned dead still and ominously quiet. To add to the eerie quality, a pirate ship cut through the still, blackened waters. Lanterns located at different intervals of the ship provided a small, iridescent glow that lighted the portions of ocean that were visible around it. The ship was almost like a ghost ship that had escaped the bowels of hell and was coming to fulfill a certain destiny that had yet to be settled. At the top of the Crow's Nest, a lookout peered through a lens, his eyes trying to penetrate the thick curtain of blackness. Beside him, a flag whipped in the strong wind. Even against the backdrop of pure darkness, the symbol etched on the center of it was clearly visible: a skull and crossbones. This was a pirate ship, and it was currently on a mission. A mission, that if gone wrong, could prove to be fatal.

On deck, not a single sound broke the silence. Except for a gruff voice. That voice belonged to a drunken pirate, who was singing to himself in a low monotone.

"Yo ho, yo ho and a bottle of rum. Fifteen men on a dead man's chest. Drink up me hearties, yo ho. Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me."

The drunk stumbled across the deck and came to a halt in front of the ship's railing. He then produced a small canteen from his pocket and took a long swig of rum. He closed his eyes, reveling in its bitter taste.

"Sailor," a curt voice pierced the silence behind the drunk, "don't you have a position to fill?"

The drunk turned to face his captain. The captain of this vessel was a man who was able to command presence wherever he went. He sported the regular hat, coat, sword, etc. that any captain who sailed the seven seas knew was appropriate attire.

"Aye, Captain," the drunk slurred in response, "but given my current condition, I'm afraid that I'm not of much use."

The captain eyed the canteen clutched between the drunk's fingers and nodded in understanding. "On your way."

The drunk nodded and slunk below deck.

The captain watched the drunk until he had disappeared below deck. Confident that he and his first mate wouldn't be disturbed, pulled a folded piece of parchment from his inside jacket pocket and walked over to a lantern. His first mate followed.

The captain held up the paper, which was a map, to the lantern. The lantern gave off an eerie yellow-orange glow that added to the strong sense of foreboding.

As the captain was examining the map, a question popped into the first mate's head.

"Captain, are you sure that this information is accurate?"

The captain lowered the map in exasperation, his concentration broken. "I personally saw the original map when I snuck into McGivens' personal quarters and etched this exact copy. Fortunately, I was able to finish before his men found me. So, yes, I am confident in this information."

"Do you think McGivens will send any of his mercenaries after us?"

The captain shrugged off the question. "Please. McGivens is too busy trying to capture the real thief who attempted to steal the map in the first place. You needn't worry. We're in the clear."

"I just hope you're right."

The captain smirked as he once again busied himself with scrutinizing the map. He looked up. "Ah. If the coordinates are correct, then we should be here."

The first mate glanced in the direction his captain was looking and was only able to stare in awe at what met his eyes.

Ahead of them was a thick mile-high wall of dense, gray fog. It seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, and within seconds, the ship had crossed its threshold. Once the ship was fully inside the mist, a sudden strong gush of wind blew out every lantern onboard, shrouding the ship in total darkness. Nothing was visible at all.

The captain tucked the map away and peered over the railing. All he could see was the fog and nothing else. He then called up to the lookout in the Crow's Nest.

"Can you see anything?"

"No, sir," the lookout called back. "Not through this unnatural fog."

"The Bermuda Triangle," the first mate breathed in fear.

"Or The Devil's Triangle as it's most commonly referred to among others. Many ships have sailed into it, but none have returned. So the legend is real."

"You think we'll disappear?"

The captain paused before answering. "No."

All of a sudden, the lanterns flickered back on as the fog evaporated into thin air. Once again, the black waters and gloomy sky was visible. The first mate glanced around curiously.

"Spooky," he commented.

"Indeed," the captain agreed.

Out of the night, a low rumbling sound rang out. The lookout in the Crow's Nest aimed his scope in the direction of the noise and paled considerably at what he saw.

"CANNONFIRE!"

Not a split second after the warning was shouted, the Crow's Nest suddenly exploded in a ball of orange fire as a cannonball impacted against it. Pieces of broken and splintered wood began started to rain down on the deck.

Even more rumbling noises sounded, followed by more cannonballs shattering the pieces of the ship that they collided with. Loud explosions ringed in the crew's ears as the chaos continued on.

"Run out the guns!"

Unfortunately, the captain's orders went unheard over the deafening attack. The madness continued on for a few more moments. All of a sudden, though, it stopped.

Curious, yet cautious, everyone who had scrambled on deck during the torrent of explosions slowly lifted themselves to their feet, taking in the true extent of all the damage.

"Is it over," the first mate asked.

The instant the words had left his mouth, many monstrous creatures appeared out of thin air. They wasted no time in plunging the swords they clutched into the chests of different crewmen. Cries of anguish and pain replaced the loud booming of cannonballs. After about six members of the crew had been killed, the creatures slid their swords back into their hilts. Their bodies then shook, and right before the crew's eyes, the creatures slowly morphed into humans. The newly formed humans were pirates without a doubt, their vicious and bloodthirsty appearances giving them away.

Suddenly, a huge figure materialized at the center of the deck. This man was obviously the captain of the crew. The pirate was bedecked in obvious pirate attire, everything he wore battered and almost close to rags. But nonetheless, upon first glance, any man, woman or child who crossed paths with this savage knew that he was someone whom you did _not_ want to cross. This man was none other than the notorious Edward "Blackbeard" Teach. The most feared pirate ever to sail the seven seas. And at the moment, if someone were to look directly into his eyes, that person might have fallen over dead immediately.

Blackbeard's second-in-command approached him. "Seven still alive. The rest have moved on."

Blackbeard turned to his first mate and growled, "You know what to do with the survivors."

The second-in-command nodded and walked over to his men, who were currently holding the survivors of the attack hostage.

"Take them ashore," he ordered.

As the pirates bounded the crew's hands behind their backs, a brave soul shook off his captor and broke out at a run for the railing. Seeing this, Blackbeard lazily pulled out his pistol, cocked the hammer, aimed at the escapee, and pulled the trigger. The crew member immediately fell to the deck, lifeless. Blackbeard then replaced his pistol.

"Shame that," he commented.

Other members of his crew laughed maliciously as one of them disposed of the body by dumping it into the ocean.

"Any other objections," Blackbeard addressed the captive crew. None of them uttered a word. "Very well." Blackbeard nodded to his men and they evaporated into thin air, along with their prisoners. Blackbeard lingered for a bit, however, and gazed out at the blackened sea. He smiled to himself. The treasure of the Bermuda Triangle still lay protected.


	2. Con Game

Chapter 2

The cave looked like something that had leapt straight from someone's nightmares into the real world. Pillars and such composed of sharp rock jutted upwards from their barren source and the calm ocean, threatening to poke holes in the night sky. On top of its entrance was what appeared to be fangs carved out of stone and rock. To sailors who were just passing it by, the structure appeared to be a giant demon that was about to swallow them whole. But if anyone knew what the cave really housed, they wouldn't be concerned at all with the outside. It was what was on the inside that was the real important matter.

And the bounty hunter who was currently approaching the cave onboard his ship knew what lay ahead. The orders he had been given by his employer, he remembered, were strict and to the point. And they still echoed inside his head.

"_Find the thief and bring him back to me, alive. If you're successful, I'll make sure that you and your crew are handsomely rewarded."_

The bounty hunter and his crew had ultimately accomplished their goal. They had caught up with their target on an island just a few miles away from this very spot. The employer had said to meet him inside this very cave the moment the thief had been captured; the employer and his men would be waiting for them. Obviously, the bounty hunter had been curious as to what exactly he was getting himself into when his employer had come to him with the assignment. The employer said his name was simply McGivens, he hadn't given a first name. McGivens had apparently been the victim of a recent theft; the thief having snuck into his home and stolen some type of unfinished scrawling. McGivens hadn't said what the object was, just that its safe return was of the utmost importance. After three full days of searching, the bounty hunter had finally found his quarry.

As the ship came closer to the entrance, the bounty hunter suddenly remembered something. He turned his head to the nearest shipmate.

"Douse the lamps, except one."

The shipmate nodded and diligently went about his work and within seconds, only one lamp provided the light for the ominous vessel. Even in the absence of light, the bounty hunter's eyes were able to pierce the impenetrable curtain of darkness. He scanned the area in front of the cave's entrance. Within minutes, what he was anticipating showed itself.

A solitary light flashed into existence inside the cave's mouth; a signal. The bounty hunter smiled to himself as he once again turned to the shipmate.

"Let go of the anchor," he commanded.

Seconds later, the ship was weighed down to the ocean floor. The bounty hunter then went about checking his own personal artillery. He examined his sword closely, made sure that his pistol was properly loaded and in working order, and once he was finished, he turned to a crew member.

"Bring up the prisoner," he said.

As the crewmate carried out his order, the bounty hunter's first mate approached him.

"Should we be prepared for any trouble?"

"No, but just in case, you know what to do."

The first mate nodded. Just then, a completely hooded figure, flanked by two men who had a firm grip on both his arms, ascended the stairs that led to the brig. The prisoner was struggling against his captors, trying to wriggle himself free. His face was not visible, due to the fact that it was hanging. The two men reached their captain.

"He won't stop resisting," the brawnier of the men said.

The bounty hunter simply removed his pistol from his belt, placed it against the prisoner's head, and pulled back the hammer.

"You're no good to us dead," the bounty hunter told the prisoner, "so I would start to cooperate if I were you." His tone of voice was unwavering.

Realizing that resistance was futile, the prisoner relaxed himself. The bounty hunter smiled and replaced his weapon.

"Good. Now, we're to go ashore."

The men who held the prisoner nodded and indicated the swords strapped to their sides in different ways. The first mate also ran his hand over the hilt of his own.

"Now that I see that we're all properly prepared, let's get on with it."

The bounty hunter, his first mate, the two guards and the prisoner were soon inside the small rowboat as it was being lowered into the ocean.

In the course of about two or three minutes, the boat had crossed the threshold of the cave and they were suddenly overtaken by the darkness. Up ahead, the lantern from before still gleamed in the blackness. As the boat passed it, the crew members spied a lone man sitting beside it who seemed to have been waiting for them. When the man caught sight of them, he merely extended his forefinger and pointed straight ahead. In the distance, a small opening was visible from which a dim glow of light radiated.

Sailing on, the boat reached the circular opening, where the glow of light had become a tad bit brighter. As they sailed into the small space, the bounty hunter glanced around, taking in their new surroundings. Torches sat in brackets at different locations along the cave walls. In the center of the space was a spit of land big enough to hold a maximum of about seventy people. On the small island, though, stood a group of about ten or so people. Each man had a sword placed into hilts, pistols clutched preciously in their palms, and rifles strapped across their backs. They had the appearance of pirates, but they looked like more civilized men of action.

The boat docked with the rock, and each passenger stepped ashore. The man in the middle of the group eyed the new arrivals with pleasure.

"Ah," said McGivens, "I see the great white hunter managed to bag his prize."

"Yes," the bounty hunter replied, "and it took a good three days to do so.

"Oh well," McGivens sighed, "at least it didn't detract from the thrill of the hunt, eh?"

"Quite." The bounty hunter glanced at the prisoner and then at the armed men surrounding them. "I see you're not afraid to be a bit overcautious."

"Well, you never know when danger might show it's ugly head, do you?"

"No," the bounty hunter admitted, "you don't. Now if you don't mind, I believe it would be prudent to get straight to business, don't you?"

"Couldn't agree more," McGivens smiled. He nodded towards two of his own men, and they made their way towards the prisoner. The two men curtly dismissed the prisoner's previous guards and proceeded in dragging the captor up to McGivens. "Do you have what he stole from me?"

The bounty hunter nodded, pulling a folded piece of paper from his pocket and he tossed it to McGivens, who caught it. McGivens then pocketed it for safe-keeping.

"Now, I believe we had a deal," prodded the bounty hunter. "You have what you want, now why don't you kindly hand over what we want."

McGivens smirked. "Sorry, I don't do business with pirates."

His men then aimed and cocked their pistols at the small group. But all of a sudden, another pistol was at McGivens' head. The weapon was in the hands of the prisoner, whose bonds that were holding his hands together now lay on the ground, cut in half.

"It's a habit I would pick up if I were you, mate."

The prisoner then lowered his hood, revealing his face. The grinning face of Captain Jack Sparrow suddenly filled McGivens' vision.

"Jack Sparrow!"

"_Captain!_ Captain Jack Sparrow, if you please."

McGivens looked around cursed himself. "It was all a trap, a con."

"I could have told you that."

McGivens smirked. "I'm afraid I still have the upper hand here."

"All evidence to the contrary. Now, if you would kindly hand over that map of yours, me and my men will be on our way and we wouldn't be obligated to use force, savvy?"

"Too late to say that."

All of a sudden, McGivens' men engaged Jack's in battle. Picking up on it, both Jack and McGivens drew their swords at the same time. They wasted no time in clanging the metal furiously. They maneuvered all over the area. Each showed no mercy in the blows they landed ; attempting to take their opponent out of commission. The duelers wove in and out of everyone else, their gaze never breaking. Knowing that murder wouldn't be necessary, Jack tried to simply knock McGivens unconscious many times, but to no avail. Spinning in a full circle, Jack brought his blade down upon McGivens', the force of the blow knocking the weapon from his enemy's grasp. Beaten, McGivens then raised his hands in surrender. Smirking, Jack proceeded to punch McGivens' lights out. Job done, Jack started to frisk McGivens' body until he came across his incentive. A treasure map. Sliding his sword back into his hilt, Jack turned to the rest of his group. He was surprised to find McGivens' men all dead.

"I didn't mean for you to actually _kill_ them."

"You just wanted us to render them unconscious," his father, a.k.a the bounty hunter, asked in mild surprise. "Oh well."

"But still," Joshame Gibbs commented, "not _quite_ according to plan."

Jack smiled. "Well, as always, complications arose, ensued, were overcome."

"Anyway," said James Sparrow, "we got what we came for."

"I trust you know what that's a map for," Gibbs asked.

"Of course. It's a treasure map. Honestly, use common sense, mate."

"_What_ treasure exactly?"

"That's why we have a need to stop by Tortuga. A friend of mine who's an expert on treasure legends resides there and he could be of some help. That's our new heading."

"Aye, Cap'n."

"Now, all hands to the ship."

Jack and his crew then proceeded to sail back to the Black Pearl.


	3. Storytelling

Chapter 3

There was a certain aura of disorganization that hung over the town of Tortuga. The pirate town seemed to be forever suspended in a drunken stupor of chaos and stupidity. The public pub was the main source of all this madness. Every night, all the drunken sailors would converge on the location, and it would immediately transform into a madhouse. And at the moment, that was exactly what it was.

The pub was filled with pirates whose brain cells had long been dumbed down by infinite amounts of rum. And yet, more rum was being consumed by the gallons without any hesitation. If anyone attempted to steal another person's bottle of rum, the thief would immediately receive a fist to the face followed by the fresh taste of blood in their mouth. Small brawls that had recently broken out between people were scattered around the room. In many ways, the scene was pathetic, yet amazing. Amazing in the sense that people could become so juvenile in times like this.

The door to the pub swung open, and Jack, flanked by his father and Gibbs, entered. They made their way to a table and sat down. Gibbs leaned in towards Jack.

"Now, where is this treasure expert of yours?"

"He should be in the room behind the bar." Jack glanced to a small door that was located behind the bar. "He prefers to drink in peace."

"How well do you know him?"

"I've been using him for years. He's the one who informed me of the Aztec gold and he also happens to be the person who further filled me in on the chest of Davy Jones."

Gibbs raised his eyebrow. "How could one person know so much about these types of legends?"

"Let's just say he's rather curious."

"He have a name?"

"Bloke only likes to be known as "Smith"."

"And you're sure he's reliable?"

"Positive."

Jack made to get up, but his father grasped his arm. "Jack, hold on."

"What is it?"

"Just need to clear something up."

"And what would that be?"

"The whole "Fake Prisoner" issue."

Jack sighed and sat back down. "What's left to clear up? You came up with a plan that I wasn't too keen on, but I had to go along with it. See, me, I'd have preferred to just steal the map and not have been all fancy about it."

"I'm sorry, son. It was the only way I could think of."

Jack grinned. "Well, we wouldn't be having this discussion if I had managed to steal the actual map in the first place and not a decoy. But, hey, how was I supposed to know McGivens would have a fake, uncompleted map for this exact reason in the first place?"

"But exactly why were you trying to escape?"

"You should know that improvisation is in our blood. I was merely trying to come up with an alternative plan on the spot. That and I was in the moment."

"So, all's forgiven?"

Jack stared at his father for a moment before grinning. "Yeah, I guess."

"Excellent. Now, by all means, take the next step on the pathway to our wealthiness."

Jack nodded and slunk his way towards the back room. On his way, a brawling pair rushed past him, one man clutching an unopened bottle of rum in his hands. Jack simply plucked it away from his grasp and carried on.

"Thanks, mate," he said.

Once Jack had entered the concealed room, James turned to Gibbs.

"Wanna get some rum," he asked.

"I don't want rum, I _need_ it at the moment."

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The door to the pub's back room creaked open, and Jack slipped inside. There wasn't much to the room; torches and candles provided the only light, and in the center of the room was a single table with a lone man sitting in front of it. The man wore more civilized clothes than the rest of the pirates outside, although they were pretty old and dusty. The man was currently sipping a bottle of rum, and gazing intently at an open book. When the room's occupant noticed another person had entered, he looked up and smiled warmly.

"Ah, Captain Jack Sparrow," the man greeted Jack in a slightly scratchy tone.

"The one and only, mate," Jack smiled back. "Good to see you again, Smith."

"Same here. I haven't seen you since you wanted to find the key to unlock the chest of Davy Jones. Although, curiosity has taken a hold of me. To what do I owe this pleasant, unannounced intrusion of yours?"

"Think about it. To what do you _always_ owe the pleasure of one of my...intrusions, as you so bluntly put it?"

Smith grinned. "Well, I would have to say that would be some type of valuable cache. In other words, treasure. So, what is it that you're after this time, Jack?"

Jack made his way over to the table, pulled up a chair and sat down. He then pulled out the map from his pocket, and tossed it in front of Smith. "This."

Smith picked up the map and unfolded it before examining it with curiosity. While he was doing so, Jack uncorked his bottle or rum and started to take long swigs from it. When Smith was finished, he gazed up at Jack in wonder.

"My God...Jack, do you have any idea what this is a map to?"

"No. I was actually hoping you could tell me that."

Smith took another sip of rum before continuing. "Jack, this is a map to find the fabled treasure of the Bermuda Triangle!" Apparently, this meant something to Smith.

"Ah," was all Jack was able to answer with.

"How much do you know about the Bermuda Triangle exactly," asked Smith.

Jack paused for a moment, thinking. "Am I obligated to know anything at all?"

"No."

"Then I don't know a lot."

"All the same, it makes it more fun in terms of storytelling."

"Before you become too involved in legends, will this take long?"

"Just listen, Jack."

"Wait a minute, how are you sure that this is the Bermuda Triangle map?"

Smith laid the map down on the table. "This symbol." He pointed out a small etching in the top right corner of the parchment. The etching was of a triangle, and in the center of it was a single closed eye.

"Ooooh, a triangle with a closed eye in the middle. What exactly does that mean?"

"Here we go. The Bermuda Triangle is the one place where many pirate ships have disappeared. They just vanish without a trace. Now, the legend of the Bermuda Triangle is simply fascinating. It is said that a very long time ago, three powerful goddesses, whose identities remain unknown, decided make a statement about how important and sometimes dominant feminism could be. So, they decided to join forces and create a vortex that's now known as the Bermuda Triangle."

"The male egos of the Gods were starting to get on their nerves, eh?"

Smith shrugged. "You could say that."

"What did these goddesses hope to achieve by creating this triangle?"

"They didn't want to gain anything. They just simply wished to have more power in the Heavens. Now, these goddesses weren't too fond of men at all. So, they cast a spell over the location that ensured that any man who sailed into it certainly wouldn't be coming out."

"Did these men meet their doom in any way?"

"No. The goddesses weren't interested in bloodshed. The first man ever to sail into the vortex became cursed. He gained the ability to change forms, morph into creatures. And the other part of his curse was to imprison any poor soul who happened to cross the triangle's threshold for eternity."

"So you're saying the Bermuda Triangle is a prison for pirates?"

"Pretty much."

"I'm curious now. Why would any pirate sail into a trap like that?"

"What's the one thing that every pirate desires most, Jack? Treasure." Smith held up the treasure map. "You see, the goddesses compiled many priceless pieces of treasure on the center island of the triangle; bait for pirates. The goddesses knew how dishonest and double-crossing men, especially pirates, could be. So, the Bermuda Triangle is the place where all pirates await judgement on their past crimes."

"Then if I attempt to find this treasure, I'll become a prisoner of the triangle myself." It wasn't a question.

"That is, unless you know the secret of how to sail across the triangle's threshold unscathed," Smith grinned knowingly.

"And what secret would that be?"

"This part is so interesting, yet so obvious. Since the triangle was created by goddesses, or women, then the key to sailing into the Bermuda Triangle safely is simply the presence of a woman aboard your ship."

Jack gave Smith a look. "You _do_ know that a woman is pretty much a bad luck omen when sailing the seas, don't you?"

"Of course I know. But this time around, that's not the case."

"Ah," Jack mused, "so the tides have changed for this little escapade."

"Exactly."

"So I need to find a woman in order to obtain the treasure you speak of."

"Precisely."

Jack grinned. "Not a problem. But is this treasure really worth all the trouble?"

"Worth it," Smith snorted. "Of course it's worth it. This treasure will make you rich beyond your wildest dreams."

Jack nodded. "Alright. Now, only one thing's left to be cleared up. Who exactly is this person who guards over the treasure?"

"The protectors of the Bermudan Treasure have changed throughout the years. Now, however, the story goes that the guardian is the most notorious, vicious, and bloodthirsty pirate ever to sail the seven seas. I think you've heard of him. The man they call Blackbeard."

"Edward Teach, eh? Well, I always rise to a challenge. Anything else I need to know before I battle mystical forces and savage pirates?"

"No, I think you're well prepared. Just watch your back over there. Although, I will suggest you somehow delve deeper into the supernatural side of the story."

Jack smiled as he stood up and gathered the map from Smith. "Don't fret. I happen to know another expert on paranormal legends."

Smith looked surprised. "Better than me?"

"Well, she would certainly give you a run for your money."

"She?"

"Yeah. Let's just leave it at that, shall we? So, until next time." Jack gave Smith a small salute before exiting the room.

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"A woman," Gibbs asked incredulously. "But isn't that bad luck?"

"That's exactly what I said," Jack admitted, "but if that's the only way, then we really have no choice."

Jack, Gibbs, and James were currently making their way back to the Pearl.

"So it seems that we have a need, a consequential one mind you, to make one more visit on the side before really getting involved.

"But where are we going to find a woman willing enough to accompany us on our quest?"

"Two words, mate. Port Royal."


	4. Married Life

Chapter 4

The bright morning sun started to peek through the thick clouds leftover from the previous night. The light illuminated the town of Port Royal. The town was currently awakening from its deep slumber and it was almost as if the buildings and such themselves were wearily opening their eyes and yawning, slowly preparing for the fresh new day. Townspeople stumbled out into the streets from their households and tried to find some way to occupy themselves.

Inside the Governor's mansion, the sun reflected off the stainless glass windows of the room belonging to Mr. and Mrs. Turner. Their bed was pushed up against the far wall, with their dresser and other bedroom apparel scattered about the spacious location. Inside the fireplace, the remnants of a blazing fire that had long been extinguished gave off a very faint stench of smoke. The sunlight came across the face of William Turner, causing him to squint and lazily rub his eyes. Turning around on his opposite side, he was met with the sight of his still sleeping wife, Elizabeth.

Will had to smile to himself. Even in slumber Elizabeth was the most gorgeous woman Will had ever laid eyes on. The couple had been married for two years now, and still, there was a certain flame between them that no amount of years of betrothal could put out. Even after two years of marriage, Will and Elizabeth were still as affectionate towards each other as the day they had first gotten together.

Will reached out and gently set aside a stray piece of hair that was hanging down in front of Elizabeth's right eye. He then stroked her cheek so softly that it was as if his hand was just a normal gush of air. Elizabeth yawned, Will's touch gently awakening her. When her eyes met Will's, they immediately lit up.

"Morning," she purred softly.

"Morning," Will answered back.

Elizabeth leaned her head in toward Will's and they shared the gentle, yet affectionate "Good Morning" kiss. "What time is it," she asked.

Will craned his neck slightly to glance at the clock mounted above the fireplace. "Eight-thirty."

"Do we have anything important to do today?"

Will contemplated the question for a short moment. "Not that I can think of. I believe we have the day off in terms of business and such."

"Excellent," Elizabeth smiled. "Because I don't really feel like getting up quite just yet."

"Then how do you propose we pass the time?"

"Oh, I can think of something."

She grinned before pulling him into another deep kiss. Will was unable to resist her as he gave into it. But a sudden thought came across his mind and he broke off the kiss.

"You remember what today is," he asked his wife.

Elizabeth didn't even need to think about it. "Of course. Our second anniversary."

"Yes, so I think we should save this for later tonight," he winked at her warmly.

"No objections," she said contentedly as she laid her body down against Will's bare chest.

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Half an hour later, Will and Elizabeth made their way downstairs into the sun-filled mansion, dressed in decent-enough clothing. They walked hand in hand into the dining room, where butlers and maids were currently setting the table for breakfast. Elizabeth glanced around, searching for any sight of her father. Seeing none, she approached a butler.

"Excuse me," she began, "but have you seen my father this morning."

"I'm afraid he had to leave immediately this morning in order to attend to some urgent business matters."

"Thank you."

"Of course, madame. Now, breakfast will be ready presently."

Elizabeth nodded as she and Will sat down at the table. They both folded napkins and placed them in their laps before making small-talk.

"When do you think we'll be able to afford our own house," Elizabeth asked her husband.

"Very soon, I think," Will replied. "With the blacksmith shop making more money than usual these days, I think it's safe to assume that we should have our own house within a few months."

Elizabeth nodded. "Good. We'll need a proper house if we intend to have a baby soon."

Will smiled warmly. "Then we both agree that now's a good time to really start trying for one?"

"Absolutely," Elizabeth gave Will a seductive smile. "And we can start with our efforts tonight if you're up to it."

"I definitely am." Will kissed Elizabeth's hand.

Butlers and maids carrying trays of food made their way into the dining room just then and started to lay out plates in front of Will and Elizabeth. The couple expressed their thanks toward their servants, and they dug in. Job done for the moment, the servants exited the dining room to give their masters some privacy.

As they ate, topics of politics, business affairs, and for a short while, piracy came up. Just as they were finishing, Elizabeth prodded the issue of how they were going to spend their day.

"We could go by the blacksmith shed and visit up on your father. There, you and I could have more dueling lessons."

"Sounds good," Will agreed. "But seeing as today_ is_ our anniversary, I feel the need to buy you something special."

"Oh, no. You really don't have to do that. You're all I need."

"Same here, but I insist. Husbands are supposed to do generous things for their wives on days like these.'

"Well then I myself would feel obligated to do something nice for you. Any ideas?"

"I'll tell you when something comes to mind. But for now, let's get washed up and properly dressed."

Both Will and Elizabeth rose from their seats at the same moment and made their way towards the mansion's staircase. On the way, Will slipped an arm around Elizabeth's waist and pulled her closer to him.

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An hour later, a carriage slowly rolled through the streets of Port Royal and came to a stop in front of the blacksmith shed. The driver descended from his seat and pulled open the left carriage door. He held out a hand to help Elizabeth out and she took it. Will then followed her, slightly jumping out of the carriage rather than just stepping out. He then turned toward the driver.

"How long will you and your wife be, sir," the driver asked Will.

"Not very long. Just wait here until we come back out."

"Very good."

Will pushed the door to the shed open and entered. The blacksmith shed looked as it always had, with swords, hatchets, and other such weapons dangling from the ceiling and lining the walls. A fire raged inside the fireplace that was used to heat metal, making the temperature in the room just a little more humid than necessary. Mr. Brown, the former owner of the place, had long been retired and ownership now belonged to "Bootstrap" Bill Turner, Will's father. Although, he preferred to just be called Bill nowadays. Will still worked there in order to eventually make enough money to buy a house for him and Elizabeth, and he knew that goal would soon be accomplished. At the moment, Bill was currently hunched over a small table, hard at work on sharpening the blade of a cutlass. When he saw Will and Elizabeth, he smiled.

"Came for a small visit, I see," Bill greeted them.

"Well, we haven't done so in quite some time," Will replied.

"All the same, good to see you." He walked over and gave his son a fatherly hug before kissing his daughter-in-law on the cheek.

"So how's business lately," Elizabeth asked.

"Can't complain," Bill answered. "This has been the one time in quite a while that we've had this much commerce. So, how's married life these days?"

"It's just as special and perfect as the first day we were married," Elizabeth smiled.

"And we're enjoying every single moment of it to its fullest," Will finished.

"Glad to hear it," said Bill. "You two remind me more of me and your mother every day. What you two have is special indeed. And nothing can ever destroy your relationship."

"We're just soul mates," Will said before kissing Elizabeth softly but firmly.

Bill grinned when they broke apart. "Ah, true love. So, you two wish to practice dueling some more?"

"That's actually part of the reason we came."

"Very well, then."

Both Will and Elizabeth removed some of their heavier clothing in order to gain more agility and placed them safely on hooks nailed to the wall. They each then picked up their usual weapons of choice and entered the open area in the middle of the shed used for such occasions. The couple then raised their swords, touching the tips to each other while starting to walk in circles.

"Just remember everything I've taught you and you should be fine," Will told his wife.

"Oh, don't worry about me. Just keep your guard up and don't wear yourself out. You still have a certain job to do tonight," Elizabeth winked at him.

"That I do," Will smirked back..

Immediately, they engaged each other. Elizabeth wasted no time in employing different tactics Will had taught her over the years into the practice. Will managed to keep up with her agile moves, years of experience paying off. They both made their way around the room, ducking under low hanging weapons and leaping onto small platforms that rose up from the ground. All the while, Bill watched in amusement, proud of the two young people before him who had become so experienced with a sword over the past few years. Experience was certainly the word of choice if you happened to be watching the sight. Both Will and Elizabeth had mastered almost every trick in the book over the years and brought every one of them into play.

Finally, after countless minutes of practice, each decided that they had had enough for now, and abruptly stopped in order to catch their breath. Will looked at Elizabeth.

"You really do get better every day we do this," he commended her.

Elizabeth simply shrugged. "I'm a fast learner, to say the least."

Will smiled at her as they both made to put away their weapons. For the next hour or so after that, the three family members lively chatted away at different topics of discussion. Once they were finished, Will and Elizabeth said good-bye to Bill and left, both eager to make the best of their second anniversary.

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That night, well after dinner, Will and Elizabeth bid Governor Swann goodnight and headed upstairs to their room. Once they were inside, both immediately busied themselves with lighting many different candles scattered around the room. After that, Elizabeth pulled the curtains of their window shut and turned to give her husband a seductive look.

"Happy Anniversary," she purred.

"You too," Will whispered back.

They wasted no time in kissing each other deeply, falling on top of their bed at the same time. Elizabeth started to unbutton Will's shirt as Will occupied himself with untying the strings of Elizabeth's dress, all the while their deep, passionate kisses still holding. Once every shed of clothing had been removed from their bodies, they slid under the covers. Their bare bodies fit perfectly against each other and both began to trail kisses along every inch of each other's body, each reveling in their soul mate's presence. Will and Elizabeth made love that night, and did so with a fiery, sexual passion that showed itself every time they had sex. And that passion would most certainly never be extinguished.


	5. Reunion

A/N: So sorry for such the long wait, I've been so busy with schoolwork and such. Anyway, finally, here's the new chapter.

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Chapter 5

Will woke up to the smell of Elizabeth's hair. Opening his eyes, Will saw that his wife was comfortably on top of him, already awake. They were still unclothed from the night before, their only concealment being the bed covers. Elizabeth was currently smiling lustfully at her loving husband, every ounce of love she felt for him shining in her gaze. Will smiled back and kissed her with all his might. The kiss lasted for quite a few minutes, and the couple eventually had to break away for air.

"Last night was amazing," commented Elizabeth.

"It most certainly was," Will grinned back wolfishly.

Elizabeth proceeded to slide off of Will and place her feet onto the floor, part of the bed sheet draped around her skin. Will propped himself up on an elbow, his gaze never leaving the lavish beauty who was currently getting dressed in front of him. Will glanced around and spotted his pants laying on the wooden floor beside him. He then scooped them up and put them on. Will hoisted himself up off their bed and made his way over to his wife, hugging her from behind. Once again, he breathed in the sweet scent of her hair.

Elizabeth reveled in Will's tender embrace and nestled herself more comfortably in his arms. She tilted her head slightly until her lips met Will's. Once again, they shared a passionate kiss that carried every ounce of love each had for one another. When they were finished, both gazed lovingly into each other's eyes.

"Hungry," Will asked.

"Starving," Elizabeth smiled back.

Once they were both properly dressed, Will and Elizabeth made their way downstairs for breakfast.

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Meanwhile, only a few miles away, the Black Pearl was slowly gliding towards the docks of Port Royal. In the Crow's Nest, Jack stared ahead regally at the slowly approaching city.

"Cap'n," Gibbs called up to him from the deck.

The moment ruined, Jack rolled his eyes, grabbed a rope, and swung down onto the deck.

"What is so terribly important that it caused you to ruin my moment of pride of sailing into port," Jack asked, slightly annoyed.

"Well, with all due respect, me and the crew were just wondering how exactly we were going to dock without being noticed?"

"We're not going to dock," Jack answered simply. "We're going to weigh anchor here, where we'll be able to avoid being recognized, and I'll go ashore in a boat and see if I can't persuade the lovebirds to join us on our quest."

"I trust that you're planning on using a disguise?"

"Of course. Can't risk being spotted by agents of the British Royal Navy, can I?"

"Certainly not," answered James.

"But won't the Governor's Mansion be highly guarded," Gibbs inquired.

"Of course it will," Jack grinned. "But have you forgotten? I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, I have certain methods that allow me to go undetected."

"Would those "methods" of yours involve a sword," Jack's father asked slyly.

"At times."

"The only question that remains now is that will young Will and Elizabeth agree to accompany us," Gibbs queried.

"C'mon, mate. How could they say no to the man who performed their wedding?"

"I suppose you're right."

"Of course I'm right."

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Half an hour later, Jack had draped himself in a worn cloak that hid all his identifiable features and had sailed into Port Royal by means o the small rowboat. Docking with the city, Jack grabbed a rope he brought along, hopped up out of the boat and onto the wooden dock, and proceeded to securely tie the boat to the deck, ensuring that it wouldn't drift away unexpectedly. Pulling the hood of his cloak down tighter over his head, Jack started to make his way toward his destination: the Governor's Mansion.

As Jack wove in and out of every-day townspeople, he conspicuously rechecked the tools he had brought along with him in order to accomplish his goal. Inside the cloak were his sword, another rope with a grappling hook attached to the end of it, and his pistol, which he only brought along if worse came to worse. Satisfied, he refocused on his small journey. All of a sudden, a pedestrian bumped into Jack, slightly knocking him off course.

"Sorry," the townsperson muttered apologetically.

"No problem, mate," Jack answered in a tone that successfully disguised his all-too-familiar regular voice. "Just watch where you're going."

Shaking his head, Jack trudged forward. Within minutes, he was rewarded with a view of the grand structure that was the Governor's Mansion. It sat atop a large hill and a good distance away from the town.

"Rich people," Jack exhaled before diligently continuing on.

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Meanwhile, at the entrance to the mansion, Will and Elizabeth were currently boarding a carriage that was to take them to an important business meeting with other influential political figures; the Governor was accompanying them. Will and Elizabeth kindly let the Governor enter first.

"You know," Will whispered to Elizabeth before entering the carriage, "I'm really not that enthusiastic about attending these meetings."

"I know," Elizabeth said, "but my father and his friends do value the opinion of a regular citizen when deciding on how to improve certain living conditions."

"True," Will admitted.

"Plus," Elizabeth added, "you're now practically my father's heir. Attending these meetings will prepare you for some of the duties of being Governor. And I admire you for putting up with it."

"Glad to hear it," Will grinned back. Elizabeth smiled and kissed her husband on the cheek before entering the carriage; Will followed suit after her.

Seconds later, the carriage passed through the large gates that protected the mansion from unwanted guests and down into the streets of the city. However, as it passed, no one noticed a mysterious figure poking his head up from behind a large bush. Before the gates managed to have been fully closed, Jack seized his opportunity and leaped out from his hiding spot and through the closing gates. But his action did not go unnoticed. The two guards who had pulled the gates shut immediately aimed their muskets at the intruder.

"Don't make a move, scoundrel," the first guard ordered.

"Raise your hands," the other barked.

Smiling to himself, Jack slowly raised his hands over his head as the two guards cautiously approached him. They then ripped the hood from his head, revealing his identity to them.

"Jack Sparrow," The first guard exclaimed in shock.

"_Captain _Jack Sparrow! Can't anyone ever get it right?"

"You're under arrest for intruding on private property!"

"I bet I am," Jack grinned. Just as the guards pulled out their iron shackles, Jack landed a punch to each man's face in two swift movements. The force of impact caused the guards to be knocked unconscious immediately. Jack pulled off his cloak, placed the two guards back-to-back, and wrapped the cloak tightly around them. Jack then carried on in dragging the two masses behind an array of thick bushes . Job done, Jack exhaled deeply.

"You Royal Navy people really need to start exercising more," Jack commented. "Consider the cloak a gift."

Jack turned to move on to the mansion, but halted suddenly. He then went back to the guards, ripped two pieces of the cloak off, and managed to stuff both pieces inside each of their mouth.

"Can't have you divulging mt presence here sooner than I want if you wake up soon."

Confident that there wouldn't be anymore obstacles in his way, Jack moved on to the mansion. Once he had reached it, Jack was careful in making sure that he wouldn't be spotted by any servants inside. Reassured after a few moments of careful analysis, Jack slipped the rope from his shoulder, stepped back some, spotted an open window, swung the grappling hook over his head some, and tossed it skyward; it hit its mark. Jack grinned to himself and tugged on the rope to make sure that it was stable enough. Jack then wasted no time at all in starting to make his slow ascent towards the open window.

Once Jack had safely made his way inside, he pulled the rope up towards him. Once all of it was with him, he glanced around at the room he just entered, which just happened to be Will and Elizabeth's room.

"Most people call it dumb luck," Jack said to himself, "I just call it luck, pure and simple."

Jack stealthily walked across the room to the door that slightly stood ajar, and silently closed it all the way. Deciding on not taking chances anyway, Jack crept inside the room's closet and pulled that door shut as well.

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About two hours later, the carriage returned home and deposited its inhabitants safely at the front door. Governor Swann turned to face Will.

"So, William, what did you think?"

"A very enlightening meeting," Will replied, trying to sound as convincing as possible. Elizabeth gave him a furtive smirk.

"Well it seems that your ideas will definitely be considered."

"I should hope so," Will smiled.

The Governor gestured for Will to enter first, followed by Elizabeth. Once inside, a butler promptly strode up and removed Will's and Governor Swann's coats.

"Lunch will be ready shortly," he informed them.

"Excuse us, we're going to slip into something more comfortable for home," Elizabeth told her father before both she and Will made their way upstairs to their room. They stepped inside, closing the door behind them.

Not five seconds after they closed the door, a familiar voice filled Will and Elizabeth's ears.

"Bout time you two showed up! Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting in that stuffy closet?"

Surprised, both Will and Elizabeth turned around at the same time to be met with the sight of Jack, standing in the open doorway of their closet.

"Jack! How'd you get here?"

"That's a pretty long story, mate. By the way, why does your little villa have to be so secluded from everyone else?"

"What are you doing here?"

"To ask a favor of you two."

"Jack, please," Elizabeth began. "Will and me are happily married and perfectly content right here in Port Royal. We really don't wish to get involved in another one of your misadventures."

"First of all," Jack corrected, "they're not misadventures. They're simply adventures, minus the "mis". And secondly, how can you say no to the man who is practically the reason why you two are happily married in the first place?"

"We can say no very easily, as a matter of fact."

"Oh, c'mon. I've come so far to meet up with you, the least you could do is hear me out before rejecting me. It would be the proper thing for people of your status to do."

Will and Elizabeth both looked at each other before sighing heavily. "Alright, Jack," said Will. "What've you gotten yourself into this time?"

Jack then began to divulge the tale of the Bermuda Triangle to the couple, explaining why he was here in the first place.

"So, you see, your presence is quite literally required for this quest to be successful."

"How credible is your source of information," asked Will.

"Incredibly accurate. All this comes from the same bloke who told me about the cursed Aztec gold _and_ the chest of Davy Jones."

"So I take it that once we reach the Bermuda Triangle, we'll be in constant danger?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, mate. Probably so."

Will once again sighed deeply and walked over to the open window, gazing out at the sea. "Wait a minute, where's the Pearl?"

"Out of sight in order to protect my company here. Now, back to the business at hand, are you coming along, or do I have to go to Tortuga and coax some wench into joining me?"

Will glanced over at Elizabeth and silently, they both made their decision. After all, they _did_ owe Jack a favor. And he was their friend.

"Very well, Jack. We'll come along. But if anything such as a permanent injury or scarring occurs to either Elizabeth or me, you won't hear the end of it."

"Understood," Jack grinned. "Now, I'll try to find some way to give you two privacy whilst you change into something more "Pirate-appropriate."

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Minutes later, Will and Elizabeth had changed into their usual pirate clothes and had fished their swords and such from their secret hiding place for all of their traces of piracy.

"I hope you two know how to climb down a mansion using a rope," Jack told them.

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Meanwhile, outside, a Navy guard on patrol came across a shifting mass behind a bush. Investigating it more closely, he discovered two tied-up guards with their mouths gagged. The patrolman immediately removed both their gags.

"What the devil happened to the two of you," he demanded.

"Sparrow," one of them gasped out. "He's inside the mansion and is armed."


	6. Means of Escape

Chapter 6

Three armed Navy guards stormed through the front doors of the mansion, muskets loaded and at the ready. Within seconds, the group had raced up the main stairs and came to a halt in front of Will and Elizabeth's door. Immediately, Governor Swann made his way to him.

"I demand to know what exactly do you think you're doing!"

"Stand back, Governor," the commander of the group cautioned. "We have reason to believe that Jack Sparrow has snuck inside the mansion."

"And what makes you think that he's in my daughter and son-in-law's room?"

"Well, they have assisted Sparrow in the past, haven't they? So it would be apparent that he may be trying to persuade them to join him on one of his crusades."

The commander then stepped forward and firmly knocked a couple of times on the door. "Mr. Turner? Mrs. Turner?"

The pronouncement was met with silence. The commander repeated his actions once more before becoming increasingly impatient. After a few moments, the commander finally gave in and broke down the locked door with the help of the butt of his musket. The door caved in upon impact and sent splintered wood flying in every direction. The troops clamored inside and glanced around; no sign of Jack, Will, or Elizabeth. Checking for reassurance, the commander crossed over to the window and glanced outside.

Jack, Will, And Elizabeth were outside and racing away, with Jack's pistol in his hand. The commander turned toward his men.

"Sparrow's escaping with both Turners! Follow me!"

He raced back outside, each of his men following close in his wake.

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Outside, Jack, Will, and Elizabeth ran around to the back of the mansion, where the carriages were located.

"You planning on stealing a carriage," Will asked.

"Borrow. Pirate term."

Jack made his way toward the driver of the closest carriage. When he was close enough, Jack raised his pistol.

"Normally I wouldn't...wait, of course I would. So sorry, mate."

The driver raised his hands and retreated. Jack grinned and motioned for Will and Elizabeth to get in. Elizabeth jumped inside while both Will and Jack made for the reins.

"Don't think so, mate. I'm the more qualified driver between you and me. Get inside with your bonnie lass."

Will opened his mouth to argue but was cut off by the group of Navy guards barreling outside towards them. Will decided to leave it up to Jack and leapt inside with Elizabeth while Jack jumped into the driver's seat. Jack gripped both reins in his fingers and ushered the horses forward. The carriage immediately sped away down the pathway. Seeing this, a few of the guards caught on and clambered inside the remaining carriage, giving chase.

As both carriages raced down into the streets of Port Royal, Jack glanced behind him, seeing their opponents slowly gaining on them.

"Bugger!"

He whipped the horses some more, desperate to gain more distance between the troops. From behind, two guards leaned outside from their positions inside the carriage, took aim with their muskets, and fired. The shots rang uncomfortably close to Jack.

"No shooting," he protested.

He picked up his pistol from beside him, and fired off his shot behind him without even bothering to look. Getting a sudden idea, he forced the horses to make a sudden, sharp turn onto a sidestreet within the city. The action caused the carriage to lean dauntingly close to the ground, but nonetheless, it regained its footing. Just then, Will poked his head outside.

"Are you trying to kill us," he proclaimed.

"Course not! Now just do the best you can at staying calm and trusting me!"

Will turned his head to see the Navy carriage still behind them. "They're still coming," he warned Jack.

"Persistent little pests aren't they?"

Will leaned back inside. "Don't we have anything useful in here," he asked Elizabeth. But Elizabeth was already one step ahead of him, already searching for a tool of use. By fate, it seemed, she came across one. A wooden box. She opened it, revealing a pistol; something that came in handy if looters ever converged on them.

"Worth a shot," Will shrugged.

He removed the weapon from its holding place, pulled back the hammer, and leaned back outside.

"Don't shoot a guard," Elizabeth called out to him.

"I'm not," Will reassured her. Just as Will was taking careful aim, a wheel hit a bump in the road, causing Will to shoot upwards too high. Jack turned to look.

"Was that you," he asked.

Will nodded.

"Well a lot of good that did. Hey, while I have your attention, see if there's any alcoholic beverages in there."

Will disappeared yet again inside the carriage, knowing full well that there indeed was a bottle of vintage wine the Governor always kept inside this particular carriage. He found it and then handed it over to Jack, humoring him. Jack gratefully seized the bottle while still navigating his way through the city streets. He then uncorked it and took a long swig.

"Ah, just what I needed!"

It was then that all three adventurers noticed that the other carriage had somehow caught up with them and was currently racing alongside them. Jack merely tucked his bottle beside him, concentrating on the two more important tasks at hand.

A Navy guard swung his musket at Jack, attempting to knock him from his position. Jack dodged the attack with amazing agility and caught the musket in his head. He then brought it full-force into the guard's face.

"That's gonna hurt later."

With the musket still in hand, Jack plunged it against the madly spinning wheel of the Navy's carriage. The action caused the wheel to break apart and the carriage to suddenly spiral out of control. Soon, the carriage went flying through the air momentarily and ultimately fell to the ground, breaking apart upon impact. Jack gazed at the musket with a small sense of fear and tossed it away. He then called out behind his back: "Alas, my comrades, you will always remember this as the day that you almost caught Captain Jack –" (the carriage then lurched forward suddenly) "Sparrow," Jack muttered, his moment of pride defeated.

"I can't believe you just did that," Elizabeth shouted, poking her head outside.

"Me neither," Jack admitted.

With the trouble eliminated, Jack slowed the carriage down to a reasonable pace. And at the moment, they happened to come to a halt in front of the docks. Jack leaped down from his perch and went to open the carriage door for his friends.

"The wine was excellent, the carriage suited my needs perfectly, remind me to send your father a note," he said to Elizabeth, who rolled her eyes.

"Where's your means of transportation," Will questioned.

Jack pointed toward the longboat. "Right in front of you, mate. Now, get inside before we meet any more problems."

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Minutes later, the longboat reached the Pearl and the trio climbed up on deck.

"Welcome back, William. Elizabeth," Gibbs greeted the couple.

"Good to see you again," James added.

"Same here," Will smiled.

"How's marriage been treating you," asked Gibbs.

"No time for idle chit-chat, I'm afraid," Jack piped up as he climbed aboard. "We have important matters to attend to."

"Right you are, Cap'n," said Gibbs.

'Weigh anchor," Jack commanded.

As the order was carried out, Will and Elizabeth approached Jack. "I trust we have a heading?"

"Absolutely," Jack said, pulling out his compass. "Make way for...Northeast."

"Aye," a shipmate chimed out.

Jack put away his little trinket and merrily turned to Will and Elizabeth. I'd get comfortable if I were you. This may be quite a long voyage."

"Are we sailing directly to the Triangle without any stops?"

"Not quite. We have a required visit we need to make with Tia Dalma first, and then we'll be on our way."

"Why Tia Dalma," asked Elizabeth.

"Because, luv, the Bermuda Triangle is the result of the hard work of goddesses, and we're bound to run into some supernatural forces of nature, savvy?"

Elizabeth shrugged.

"Jack," Will began, "is there anything else we should know about?" He gave Jack a stern stare.

"Well...there is one aspect of the story I neglected to mention."

"And that would be?"

"There's a cursed, shape-shifting pirate crew that's bound to protect the treasure by Bermuda Triangle law." Jack hesitated for a moment before continuing on. "How much do you know about Edward Teach, otherwise known as Blackbeard?"

Both Will and Elizabeth gave Jack a look. "He guards the treasure," Elizabeth asked.

"Fraid so, luv."

"What have we gotten ourselves into," Will asked rhetorically.

"I've been asking myself that for the past few days," Jack said before waltzing away. Will then turned to face Elizabeth.

"Always good to be in the company of Captain Jack Sparrow," he said sarcastically.

They both gazed up at Jack, who was currently standing at the helm, staring regally once again out at the sea.


	7. Torture Session

Chapter 7

Inside the Bermudan Prison, no one could hear you scream. No one, that is, except for the other inmates and the ruthless guards. The inmates wouldn't be able to hear you, due to the fact they were too busy drowning in their own anguish, despair, and pain; and the guards just didn't care. The prison was a literal hellhole, bursting at the seams with death, torture, and cruelty.

The prison was located on the center island of the Bermuda Triangle, disguised as a dormant volcano. But appearances can be deceiving. The volcano wasn't actual, it was just an illusion. However, the red and orange glow bursting from the circular opening at the very top was real; it was the blaze from countless torches lining the walls inside. The opening was located in the very middle, a sturdy stone bridge leading from the adjacent peak providing the foreboding pathway.

Throughout the silent corridors, the sound of a cracking whip pierced the thin air. The noise was coming from the torture chamber, located right next to the array of cells filled with depressed and decaying pirates who had now become prisoners. Again, the sharp cracks echoed in the dank space.

Inside the torture chamber, a battered, bruised, bleeding, and bare-chested prisoner was being held up by his wrists in chains while once again, the lethal lash ate away at just a bit more of his raw flesh. The man yelled in agony, his eyes watering from the intense pain surging through every bone and muscle in his body. The prisoner's sense of touch was slowly starting to ebb away along with his subconsciousness.

From the shadows of the dimly lit chamber, Blackbeard looked on in malicious glee as his top tormenter inflicted endless pain on the pathetic excuse of a man now crumpled to his knees before him. Blackbeard currently sported a blood-red captain's coat that almost made his ink-black beard blend into the fabric. Two slits that served as his eyes poked out from a tough, hardened face that had no intention of showing even the slightest hint of mercy. The ruthless pirate also wore many weapons within the hilt of his belt; an edged sword that could pierce through skin with only the slightest touch, many loaded pistols, a lash of his own, and countless knives. If looks could kill, then anyone who so much as glanced upon Blackbeard could die instantly.

Satisfied at how long the lashing had endured, Blackbeard stepped forward and motioned for his henchman to cease his actions. The man obediently obeyed whilst his captain made his way over to the battered and broken prisoner. Blackbeard kneeled down so that he could make eye contact.

"By now, you're flesh should feel nonexistent and the bone exposed. It's the feeling everyone gets when lashed continually for this amount of time."

The prisoner was to weak to say anything; he merely let out a whimper. Blackbeard grinned, removed a key from his pocket, and unlocked the steel restraints that were holding the man up. The prisoner fell to the stone floor in a crumpled heap and curled up into a fetal ball.

"Disgusting," Blackbeard spat. "Why don't you do yourself a favor and cooperate by telling us what exactly your intentions were when sailing here? Your captain won't utter a word, so that leaves you: his first mate."

The first mate stared defiantly up into Blackbeard's eyes. "Go...to...hell!" Every word was drenched with both pain and pure white hot anger.

Blackbeard sighed and glanced toward the tormentor, who nodded while removing his sword from its hilt. He conspicuously approached the first mate from behind, and wasted no time in plunging the blade directly into the man's skin so deep, that the tormentor was positive the tip was able to penetrate the heart. Instantly, all traces of life evaporated from the first mate's eyes as the sword was yanked out of his back, causing him to fall over dead.

"You first," Blackbeard told the fresh corpse. Blackbeard turned to his faithful follower. "Bring in the captain. Let's see if we can't get anything more from him." His eyes glanced over the dead body. "And throw this one out to sea. We don't need his stench adding on to the already foul odor."

The henchman went about his duties as Blackbeard waltzed over to a small window, through which moonlight poured inside. Blackbeard glanced down at his chest, and removed a gold coin that was attached to the necklace draped around his neck. The piece of gold was large enough to fill the whole of his palm. At the center was a radiant red ruby which shone brightly even in the dimness of the fires. The ruby acted as the eyeball for an engraved drawing of a woman's eye on the front of the medallion. This medallion was not only a memento from the goddesses with whom Blackbeard had struck his bargain to guard over the treasure for these past few years, but it also served as the source of power for his crew's, Blackbeard included, ability to morph into monstrous creatures of immeasurable force; and that power was at their fingertips anytime they desired it.

Their years of service were almost up, and Blackbeard had a certain plot in mind. He and his crew intended to steal the Bermudan Treasure when they got their chance, and escape to one of their old hideouts. Blackbeard and his crew were just too greedy to let this opportunity pass them by.

The captain of the recent vessel they had taken being dragged inside the torture chamber suddenly jarred Blackbeard from his thoughts. He replaced the medallion back inside his coat and turned to face his latest victim.

"Glad you could join me again, captain," said Blackbeard in an eerily pleasant tone.

"Shove it, you cruel blighter," the captain shot back.

Blackbeard grinned and shook his head at the amount of defiance he seemed to be getting from his recent batch of captives. "Remove his shackles," he commanded.

The shackles rubbing into the captain's flesh were slowly removed, and when they were fully off, the captain rubbed his wrists furiously.

"Should I prepare him for another good lashing, sir?"

Blackbeard waved the question off. "That won't be necessary. I intend to use brute force this time around."

Quick as a flash, Blackbeard raced over and slammed his massive fist against the captain's bare jaw. The action caused the victim to fall to the ground, spitting out blood. Blackbeard then brought his boot down full-force against the captain's exposed and unprotected left arm. He could tell by the force of impact and the earsplitting cry of agony that escaped the captain's lips that he had at least broken a few bones; that and the sickening crunch that was recently audible. Blackbeard backed off.

"Are you ready to cooperate?"

His wall of defiance now broken, the captain reluctantly gave in. "Alright," he gasped out in-between short breaths, "you win."

Blackbeard smiled maliciously. "Excellent. Now why were you and your crew sailing here?"

The captain answered as he began nursing his broken arm. "We were after a treasure that was said to have been buried here."

"I thought as much," Blackbeard sighed. "Did you have a map in your possession?"

"Y-yes. And I s-s-still do. Reach into my right pocket."

The captain still wore the now battered and torn uniform he had donned the night he and his crew were abruptly attacked. Blackbeard approached him and slipped his meaty hand into the pocket. His fingers soon rubbed against something worn, and he pulled it out. It was the treasure map etching. Blackbeard unfolded the paper and eyed the scrawlings.

"Is this the real copy," he inquired.

"No. It's just an engraving."

"Well then, where is the real map?"

"It might be in the possession of another pirate as of this moment."

"Who?"

The captain hesitated before answering. Growing more impatient by the minute, Blackbeard urged him on. "Tell me, or I will have no hesitation in breaking your other arm."

"J-Jack...Sparrow."

Blackbeard's insides tightened at the sound of the name. Blackbeard and Jack had briefly crossed paths once before, and the experience was not a fond memory of his.

"Sparrow," Blackbeard spat out the name like it was poison. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

Blackbeard heaved a deep sigh. "Very well. You've served your purpose. Take him back to his cell."

The henchman nodded and dragged the captain away. After they'd left, Blackbeard once again stared down at the copy; it was an exact replica of the real map. Crumpling up the paper in anger, Blackbeard's temper slowly started to rise and he tossed the paper into a torch's flame with precise aim. He then stared out at the moonlit ocean once again, quietly contemplating what to do next. He finally came to a solution; once Jack Sparrow crossed the threshold of the Bermuda Triangle, the wily pirate would soon find himself neck-deep in his worst nightmare.


	8. A Visit With Tia Dalma

Chapter 8

The long, narrow strait that led to Tia Dalma's secluded hut echoed with the noises of forest creatures and a mysterious sound of what appeared to be humming. Two small longboats slowly drifted along the path, each occupant wary of what they could run into. In the lead boat sat Will and Elizabeth Turner while Jack was standing up, glancing around at their surroundings. Gibbs was also scrunched up in the small boat.

They had been at sea for a few days now, and both Will and Elizabeth were growing suspicious about Jack's motives for this quest. Jack had divulged that the crew would more likely run into Blackbeard himself; the most vicious and ruthless pirate out there. And yet, Jack didn't seem fazed at all at the possibility of meeting his demise in the Bermuda Triangle; on the contrary, he seemed unusually confident. Not being able to stand all the mystery anymore, Will leaned in closely toward Gibbs.

"Something's been bothering me ever since we joined you on your little treasure hunt."

"What's that, lad," Gibbs asked.

"Why does Jack seem unmoved by the idea of facing Blackbeard in the Bermuda Triangle?"

Elizabeth now joined in on the conversation, curious to hear the answer.

"Ah, well that's a tale," Gibbs smiled. "You see, Jack and ol' Edward Teach have had the pleasure of briefly meeting one another some time ago."

"Really?"

"Aye. It was years ago, probably just before Blackbeard and his crew were shanghaied into protecting the Bermudan Treasure. Blackbeard was on an island somewhere in the Caribbean, apparently preparing to carry out an execution. Well, we were sailing by the same island and happened to spot him tying two men's hands behind their backs. Jack, being the noble hero he is, immediately swam ashore and saved the two men, killing a few of Blackbeard's old crew in the process. Blackbeard was forced to retreat and he vowed to one day exact his revenge on Jack somehow."

"And Jack thinks that he can repeat history," said Will.

"Aye."

"But doesn't Blackbeard and his crew have the advantage of shape shifting," asked Elizabeth.

"Yes, but I have the knowledge of Tia Dalma on my side." Jack had been listening to the conversation and had interjected that last comment.

"You see, what Jack probably didn't mention to you is that the Bermuda Triangle is home for a pirate prison in which every pirate who happens to sail across the triangle's threshold is doomed to spend the rest of their life in. An eternity of damnation. That's what awaits you in the Bermuda Triangle."

Will suddenly glared up at Jack. "You knew about this, and yet you neglected to mention it?"

"In my defense, I thought that mentioning the prison would convince you two _not_ to come along. But now that you know and we're on our way to find out how to accomplish that feat, there should be no real problem anymore, savvy?"

"Just what information on the Bermuda Triangle do you still need, exactly," Elizabeth queried.

"I obviously need to know how to defeat ol' hairy and his men and what to do in order to find the treasure. That's where Tia Dalma comes in."

"That lady still gives me the willies, Cap'n," Gibbs commented.

"She seems to have that effect on almost everyone it seems like."

Just then, Tia Dalma's hut came into view after the crew had turned a brush in the strait. As always, it was illuminated by countless candles blaring in the gloomy sky above. The hut caused many memories to come flooding back to Jack, but before any of them could take over his consciousness, Jack managed to refocus himself on his current objective. Once his longboat had docked with the hut, Jack climbed out and started to ascend the stairs leading toward the hut's main door. All the others quickly followed suit.

"What do you want me to watch this time, Cap'n? Your front or your back?"

Jack paused in momentary thoughtfulness. "Both, as a matter of fact. Oh, and get someone else besides the parrot to mind the boat this time."

Jack turned around and slowly pushed the door open. He then entered the hut, breathing in deeply upon doing so. As always, Jack was met with the sight of many abnormal animals and eyeballs hanging from the ceiling in glass jars. In the center of the room sat Tia Dalma, crouched over her usual wooden table, experimenting on a small sea creature. When she noticed the other presence in the room, she smiled.

"Jack Sparrow!"

"Tia Dalma," Jack greeted politely in his usual manner.

"I see that the Kraken didn't leave any permanent scars," Tia Dalma eyed his father, who had just stepped inside along with Will and Elizabeth, "and that you were successful in the rescuing of your father from World's End."

"Yeah, and let me tell you, that was quite a pickle."

Tia Dalma made her way over to James and shook his hand. "A pleasure to finally meet the famous James Sparrow, Sr."

"I get that a lot," James smiled.

Tia Dalma then eyed Will and Elizabeth, who were holding hands. "You managed to change your fate, I see, William Turner."

"I thought fate was unchangeable. I've lost count of how many times you've told me that," Jack piped up.

"You'd be surprised at how powerful true love can be. Especially in cases like this."

"Sure." Jack seemed unmoved by the observation.

Tia Dalma eyed Elizabeth mysteriously for a moment. "It seems you have another destiny in front of you. A more personal one I might add." Elizabeth gave her a slightly confused look while Will did the same with his wife.

"Enough destinies," Jack intervened. "We came here for information and we're not leaving here without it." As Tia Dalma made her way back to the table, Jack added in an undertone: "How do you do that?"

"So," said Tia Dalma, "what may I assist you with this time?"

Before Jack could say anything, Will stepped forward. "It seems we have a need to sail into the Bermuda Triangle."

Tia Dalma's eyes lit up at the mention of the legendary location. "Ah, the Devil's Triangle itself. What information do you require?"

"How exactly do you defeat the protectors of the Bermudan Treasure and obtain the prize at the same time?"

"Well, as you probably already know, the guardians of the treasure are given the gift of changing their appearance at will. However, that ability lies with them so long as both the treasure remains hidden and the medallion granting them their power remains in their possession. If both circumstances change, then the crew is suddenly mortal again."

Will and Jack both sat down opposite Tia Dalma while Elizabeth stood behind Will and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Will only doing one of those things guarantee the loss of their shape-shifting powers?"

"No. If you just steal the medallion, for example, they'll still have their powers if the treasure still lies in its burial place."

"Are these pirates immortal," Jack asked tentatively.

"No, they simply have increased physical strength."

"Then let me phrase the question this way, can simple human adventurers like us take them on in a fair duel?"

"That would depend on your level of stamina."

Jack nodded. "Alright, part one of my inquiry answered. Now, onto part two and the more important point I might add. How do we locate the treasure."

"You mean besides the treasure map," Tia Dalma joked.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Very funny. No, seriously. What special kinds of trinkets come into play here?"

Tia Dalma stared at Jack a long moment. "Well, let's just say it'll take more than your compass I gave you."

"Can I trade it in for a new and improved one, then?"

"Certainly." Tia Dalma held out her hand for Jack to give her the compass. Slightly surprised, Jack produced his handy compass and reluctantly placed it in her palm. Tia Dalma tossed it away, apparently uncaring about its condition, and reached into a pocket on her dress and placed a brand-new compass in the middle of the table. "New and improved to better suit your needs than the last one."

Jack picked up the compass and examined it closely. "It looks exactly the same."

"So?"

"Shouldn't something new have a different appearance?"

"Who says?"

"Everyone."

"Do you want to find the treasure or not?"

"I do."

"Then take my advice and keep the compass."

"Are you sure it'll help?"

"If you don't want it, give it back."

"No. Finders Keepers."

Will cleared his throat. "Anything else that could be useful?"

"Just the swords in your hilts, the pistols tucked into your belts, and your skills with them."

"Only one thing of use," Jack questioned. "That's odd for you."

"I can't predict the abnormal occurrences you'll encounter in the Bermuda Triangle, so you'll just have to improvise."

"My area of expertise," Jack smiled.

"Oh, and before I forget, be warned," Tia Dalma added. "Blackbeard may not be able to harm you in the presence of a woman when you first enter the triangle, but he can once you set foot on land."

"And why is that?"

"The waters of the Triangle are enchanted with the magic of the three creators. And if a woman is present aboard a ship, that magic provides an invisible barrier around your vessel. But once you set foot on land, that protection can't be guaranteed until after you've obtained the treasure."

"I hate these loopholes in legends," said Jack. "Well, it looks like we have quite a journey ahead of us, so we'd best be off. Unless, of course, you have something else of value to us. Say, another jar of dirt?"

Tia Dalma shook her head.

"Bugger."

Jack turned and left, followed closely by the rest of his crew. But just as Elizabeth made to leave, Tia Dalma gently grabbed her arm. Elizabeth glanced at the fortuneteller.

"How long have you known you're pregnant," Tia Dalma asked.

Elizabeth looked surprised. "How did you...?"

"Being who I am, Mrs. Turner, I can't help but notice these things. Does William know yet?"

"No, not yet. I only found out a two days ago. I felt something inside my stomach. I've just been waiting for the opportune moment."

Tia Dalma nodded. "My advice, tell him immediately. He'll want to know."

Elizabeth considered her words for a moment. "I will."

That being said, Elizabeth exited the hut and joined her husband, who was waiting outside the door for her.


	9. Opposition

A/N: SO sorry for such the long delay, Life gets in the way sometimes and it's a real pain! Anyway, to make up for it, here are the next two chapters. Enjoy!

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Chapter 9

Governor Weatherby Swann stood inside his sunlight-bathed office, gazing out at the twinkling Caribbean sea. His eyes were glazed over, his thoughts dwelling on his missing daughter and son-in-law. It had been almost a week, and yet, no drastic steps had been taken to ensure their safe return. But, Swann knew that now was the time to take action; he was fed up with Jack Sparrow's constant interference in his personal and political matters. And in order to prove his feelings, Swann planned on executing Sparrow the first moment he got, something that he should have done years ago when presented with the opportunity.

Governor Swann was now in his mid 70's, and in the span of a few more years, his time would eventually come; he wanted to be remembered and revered in the best way possible. In order for that to happen, eliminating Jack Sparrow would guarantee Swann's name of honor. A sudden rap on the door jolted Swann from his thoughts. He turned on his heel to face the door.

"Enter," he commanded.

The door to Swann's office slowly creaked open, allowing the Admiral of the British fleet sanctioned in Port Royal to come inside. "You wanted a word with me, sir?"

"Yes. Please, come in," Swann waved the Admiral inside

Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins wasn't the usual burly soldier. He did have some well-built muscular arms, but Wilkins was more concerned with the weapon of intimidation. He had other methods of defeating his enemies that only rarely required the use of brute force every other Navy soldier was adamant about. His face was one of stone-cold efficiency, reflecting the determination that flared inside of him. Wilkins was also a skilled swordsman, having partaken in many hours of training and countless battles in which he always emerged the victor. Like his predecesor, James Norrington, Nathaniel Wilkins housed an ever-present hatred for pirates; Wilkins was determined on making the seas a safer place for everyone, and if it required a bit of collateral damage, then so be it. Wilkins was prepared to do whatever was necessary to get the job done.

Take a seat, if you like." Governor Swann motioned to the two chairs sitting before his desk.

"I'd rather stand, but thank you Governor." Wilkins placed both hands behind his back and astutely stood at attention.

Governor Swann nodded and began to stride slowly around his office. "Well, you know that both my daughter and son-in-law were recently kidnapped by that gallivander Jack Sparrow."

"Ah, yes. Try as we might, that wretch has always managed to slip through the British Royal Navy's grasp. He has become a thorn in the backside of every man dedicated to making the seas a safer place."

"My thoughts exactly," Swann agreed. "Well, this recent action of his has pushed my dislike for him over the edge. We need to get my daughter and son-in-law back. That's why I'm asking you to get your Commodore to band together some of his best men and form a rescue team devoted to tracking down Sparrow, bringing him to justice, and regaining my children."

Wilkins waited a moment before answering. "Governor, are you sure that wouldn't like _me_ to head the team? I assure you, with our best men under my command, Sparrow's capture would definitely be ensured."

Swann contemplated this for a moment, taking into consideration Wilkins' skill in combating pirates. If Wilkins accompanied the men, then success would pretty much be guaranteed. Finally, Swann came to his conclusion.

"Very well, Wilkins. You may accompany the Commodore and his men on their mission. But heed these words: If you happen to fail, then I expect to see your papers of recognition on my desk the first second possible. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Governor." Wilkins spoke those two words without the slightest trace of feeling whatsoever.

"You're dismissed," Swann said.

Admiral Wilkins nodded and promptly exited the Governor's office. Once the door had been pulled all the way shut, Governor Swann bent over and tightly grasped the back of a chair, fighting with all his might the tears of worry that were threatening to envelope him.

Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins made his way towards the flock of Naval ships that were tied to the posts onshore. All around him, merchant traders and peasants loaded and unloaded ships of their own, dutifully going about their business as they did every day. Wilkins admired the disciplined, efficient means that existed down here because, in his eyes, it reflected how the British Royal Navy should operate. And of course, under his command, Wilkins' squadron would meet the necessary standards.

Wilkins eyed Commodore Jonathan Sykes onboard one of the Naval vessels and immediately boarded it.

As Wilkins approached Sykes, the Commodore turned and greeted his superior with a curt nod.

"Admiral."

"Commodore. How long would it take to get your men ready for voyage?"

Sykes eyed Wilkins with a look that mixed confusion with amusement. "Do you mean at this very moment?"

"Of course."

"I suppose about forty-five minutes or so. Why?"

"I just came from Governor Swann's office and we have new orders. We are to form a rescue party to look for young Mr. and Mrs. Turner and depart from port immediately."

"What exactly do you mean by _we_?"

"What do you think I mean? I'll be accompanying you."

Sykes slightly grinned and shook his head, as if to convince Wilkins otherwise. "With all due respect, Admiral, it's highly irregular for someone of your position to come with a Commodore and his men on a simple rescue mission, wouldn't you say?"

Wilkins sighed. "Yes, I would. However, I believe that you'll need all the help you can get if you're trying to catch a pirate. Especially the one known as Jack Sparrow."

Sykes' eyes widened slightly, and he glanced around the deck, looking to see if anyone had heard Wilkins. "Jack Sparrow? But...I thought you said we were merely rescuing the Turners."

"I did say that, but that was only half of the situation. You see, Governor Swann has become so fed up with Sparrow's continuous interfering in his matters that he's ordered the execution of Sparrow."

"Execution without trial?"

"The Governor was vague on that aspect. But, of course, it all depends on if Sparrow is willing to cooperate or not by coming quietly with us."

"Taking into consideration Sparrow's past, I highly doubt that will be a possibility. But, if these are my orders, then I'll gather my best men and prepare to clear port as soon as possible."

"Excellent."

"However, I must inquire as to if we know Sparrow's destination with the Turners onboard his ship?"

"Well, given Sparrow's recent dealings with the two of them in the past, he may have taken them in order to get help out of a dire situation."

"He'll certainly be in a dire situation once we find him. Do we have a heading?"

Wilkins gazed out at the blue-green expanse of ocean before answering. "We'll start in Tortuga. If he's not there, well, someone there _must_ know where he is or where he is heading."

Sykes heaved a deep sigh and strutted over to the railing. "And if we fail?"

Wilkins smiled smugly and walked beside him. "We won't. All we have to do is find the Turners, bring them back here and if need be, kill Sparrow before we return. The Governor's demeanor seemed to suggest that he had no intent whatsoever on letting Sparrow walk out of this alive."

Sykes nodded in complete understanding.

Forty-five minutes later, Sykes and Wilkins had rounded up some men, and their vessel, the _Cutlass_, had departed from port, intent on carrying out their orders to the fullest extent.


	10. Crossing The Threshold

Chapter 10

Jack stood gallantly at the mast of the Black Pearl, gazing off into the sunny blue sky ahead. A few more days had passed since their meeting with Tia Dalma, and Jack was confident that they were very close to the Bermuda Triangle. Jack pulled out his brand-new compass to confirm his feelings; they were indeed sailing in the right direction, as the compass was now pointing north. Next, Jack fished out the treasure map from his inside pocket and carefully examined the markings scrawled upon it. He recognized the symbols around them as different islands and such, which meant that in less than thirty minutes, they should finally arrive at the Bermuda Triangle.

"So where are we," came a voice from behind Jack. He jumped slightly and turned around to see who it was while folding up the map. Will and Elizabeth had come up behind him.

"If my intuitive sense of direction is correct, then we should nearly be there," Jack replied.

"Good," Elizabeth answered. "It's about time considering we've been at sea for just over a week."

"You know, patience _is _a virtue, luv. We can't simply sprout wings and fly into the Bermuda Triangle, now can we?"

Will stepped forward. "Jack, one thing's been bothering me."

"And what would that be, my young blacksmith?"

"Why won't you let anyone else onboard read the map? What've you got to hide about it?"

"I think every man is entitled to at least _some _bit of secrecy, don't you? Anyway, I'm planning on letting you see the map just as soon as we enter the Triangle."

Will sighed. "So, once we arrive, all we have to do is dig up the treasure and return home before Blackbeard and his crew manage to run us in?"

"Yep. Doesn't sound so hard, does it?"

"Might I point out that it's only how you _hope _this will go, not how it will, exactly," Elizabeth pointed out.

"Must you two _always_ look on the logical side? But you're both trained properly with a sword, so some dueling shouldn't be a problem."

"Just like defeating Barbossa and Davy Jones wasn't a problem?"

Jack shrugged. "If that's how you look at it. Now, if you two don't mind, I'd like to navigate my vessel in privacy." Jack then turned and placed both hands on the navigation wheel, staring straight ahead at the open sea with pride.

"That's okay," said Elizabeth. "Will and I need to talk anyway."

Will turned to her in slight confusion. "About what?"

Instead of answering, Elizabeth simply laced her fingers through his as she led him downstairs toward their room.

Once inside, Elizabeth closed the door behind them. Will and Elizabeth's room was one of two normal bedrooms located above the usual crew quarters, where the rest of the crew slumbered away in hammocks at night. In addition, they had the bigger of the two beds, since a married couple slept beside each other. Currently, rays of sunshine were peeking in through the solitary window on the far wall, lighting the room in a very peaceful manner. Elizabeth guided her husband to the bed, and they both sat down on it while Elizabeth took both Will's hands in hers and gazed deep into his eyes.

"Will, there's something important I need to tell you."

"What is it, luv?" He used that same truthful tone that made Elizabeth melt every time she heard it.

"Well, um...," she hesitated slightly, "over the past few days, I've begun to notice certain things, uh, happening with me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you see, I've been displaying certain...symptoms that only women get when they're...," she didn't know why, but she was hesitating yet again.

But Will was able to pick up on the message without much trouble. "Elizabeth, are you saying that you're...pregnant?"

Elizabeth smiled widely and nodded slowly, her eyes shining with happiness. Will couldn't help but smile either as he pulled Elizabeth as close as possible and kissed her as hard as he could. When they were finished, they tightly embraced each other.

"I'm _so _happy about this," Will breathed into Elizabeth's ear.

"Me too, Will," Elizabeth whispered back.

They stayed like that for a few more moments before the voice of Captain Jack Sparrow ruined their moment. The shout was coming from the main deck above.

"All hands on deck! Get your bloody asses up here and see this for yourself!"

Will and Elizabeth both groaned in complaint as they pulled away from each other.

"Do we _have _to go see what he's yelling about," Elizabeth asked.

"I guess so," Will sighed. He kissed Elizabeth lightly. "Come on, or he'll just keep yelling."

Elizabeth giggled lightly and offered her hand to Will, who pulled her up and kept her close as they made their way upstairs. Upon arriving up on deck, Will and Elizabeth gazed out in the direction that Jack was. What they saw completely stunned them.

Only a few miles away, the bright, cheerful blue sky abruptly stopped, giving way to a dark, gloomy gray one that had lightning streaking across its different clouds. The sight seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, causing a chill to run down everyone's spine. Will shook his head and went up to Jack.

"I take it that's the Bermuda Triangle?"

"That's a painstakingly obvious assumption."

"So, what should we do?"

"Prepare to sail through a momentary storm, no doubt. Spread the word."

Will did what he was told without question and within the course of about fifteen minutes, the Black Pearl had come precariously close to the threshold. Everyone watched with bated breath as the tip of the ship broke through the ominous barrier, followed by the rest of it.

The crew was met with the arresting sound of strong, howling wind and the torrent of relentless rain. Along with those came the flash of lightning bolts streaking across the darkened sky around them. Within seconds, everyone onboard was soaked to the skin and the Pearl was rocking violently.

"Is this normal," Will called out to Jack.

"No need to fret, just help steady the ship and keep us on course. This should only last another minute or two," Jack shouted in response. Despite the situation, Jack suppressed a devilish grin and nudged Will. "I wonder if Elizabeth's clothes are so wet, you can see right through them?"

Will glared at Jack and kicked him hard.

"Ouch, just kidding!"

"What did you say about me," came Elizabeth's voice as she joined the two of them.

"Nothing," Jack answered quickly.

But indeed, despite the darkness of some of the fabric of her outfit, certain sections of Elizabeth's upper female anatomy were visible. However, if Elizabeth knew, she didn't really seem to care. Jack noticed, but received another sharp jab from Will and he immediately busied himself with navigating the ship through the small storm, spinning the wheel back and forth.

After a few more moments, the storm finally subsided and the rain and wind abruptly ceased. As if by magic, the sunny sky reappeared and a vast spread of islands met the crew's eyes.

Jack turned to Will. "See, how easy was that?"

Both Will and Elizabeth gave Jack a look.

As the ship sailed on however, no one seemed to notice another vessel floating to the side. This was a more ominous frigate, and the captain of it currently had his sights trained on it.

Blackbeard peered through his scope and scanned the decks of the Black Pearl. As he did so, he couldn't help but grin to himself in glee.

"Should we prepare the cannons, sir," his first mate asked.

Just then, the scope came across Elizabeth and paused. "No, wait," Blackbeard growled. "There's a woman onboard. I can't touch them til they step foot on land." Blackbeard turned toward his first mate. "But once they do, be prepared to attack. Show no mercy."


	11. Attack & Personal Offense

A/N: First of all, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. I meant to update last night, but time went against me.

Second, a fair warning: Towards the end of this chapter, certain things are done to Elizabeth and I hope that no girls will be offended. It was just the only way I could think of that would show how cruel these pirates could be besides torturing people. But if it does offend, I apologize in advance and hope you'll be kind enough to forgive me; I just felt it was necessary for the villains' establishment of character.

But anyway, enjoy!

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Chapter 11

The Black Pearl was tied to the shoreline and most of its crew was currently sliding down the ropes that connected the vessel with the ground. On deck, Elizabeth gazed out at the green expanse of palm trees that occupied most of the island's area. Jack slowly came up behind her until he was level with her.

"You know, Elizabeth, I wish to thank you."

Elizabeth turned her head, the golden-brown hair flowing from her scalp dancing in the cool breeze. "Thank me? For what, exactly?"

"For successfully allowing us to make it through alive to this point of our quest. I'm gladder than ever that you're a female."

Elizabeth gave Jack a slightly confused look. "Am I supposed to take that as a complement, Jack?"

"Why not? But how about this for a complement, you have a really...noticeable figure." Jack grinned in his usual manner. That only lasted a moment, however, as Elizabeth delivered a hard blow to Jack's cheek . Jack staggered back a couple of feet, but still managed to suppress a smirk. "I _definitely_ deserved that."

Elizabeth gave Jack an icy-cold glare and pointed to herself. "Married."

Jack played along. "Single."

"Very much in love."

"Don't have the time."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and crossed the deck to join Will. "Problems," Will questioned. Elizabeth waved off the question.

"Just Jack being his usual stupid self."

Will smiled. "Can't really change that, now, can we?"

"Guess not."

Will gestured before him and smiled politely. "After you."

Elizabeth smiled back and lifted her legs over the ship's railing, which allowed her to gracefully slide down the rope and onto the sandy beach below. Will watched from the ship as Jack came up beside him.

"Don't flirt with my life. She doesn't very much appreciate that."

Jack eyed Will curiously. "And since you're acting the messenger on this, I take it you don't very much appreciate it either."

"No, I don't." That said, Will jumped over the railing and slid down to the ground, leaving Jack alone momentarily.

"It seems living the life of aristocracy has finally gotten to him." Jack shook his head before following suit after his friends.

On the beach, Jack pulled out his trusty new compass and opened it. The dial spun around like mad until finally it settled in the northwest direction.

"We should head that way," Jack said as he pointed in the proper direction.

As the crew headed into the palm tree forest, not one of them noticed a group of menacing creatures appear out of thin air onto the shoreline, swords clutched dangerously in their deformed hands. In front of them all, Blackbeard watched Jack and his crew disappear into the wooded area. He smiled viciously.

"Now we can touch them."

Without another word, Blackbeard led his bloodthirsty gang after their unsuspecting prey.

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Jack walked along in the lead, map grasped in his hands directly in front of his face. His gaze never left the aged piece of parchment as he silently counted paces to himself. The dotted line the crew was currently following abruptly stopped right in front of a moderately-sized red "X" near the center. Jack glanced around him, carefully examining the landmarks that indicated that the crew was indeed nearing their goal by the second. Jack couldn't help but smile now as he began to truly take in the gravity of the situation; treasure hunting was one of the few pleasurable things Jack lived for, leading the highly enjoyable life of a pirate. Jack looked over at Will and Elizabeth, both of whom had unreadable expressions stamped across their faces. Jack simply shrugged and refocused his attention on the map he held in his hands.

Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot broke the dead silence around the crew and pieces of shattered bark broke off from a nearby palm tree. Upon instinct, everyone drew their weapons as the sound of roaring brutes invaded the air. Jack wheeled around, ready for battle, and saw a mass of charging creatures running at an alarming rate towards them. Surprise and frustration immediately taking him over, Jack uttered the first word that came into his mind.

"Bugger!"

Jack looked over once again at his trustworthy crew and exhaled deeply. "I'd prepare to defend myself if I were you!"

Just as the opposition brought down their full force upon Jack and his crew, they all blocked the vicious blows that had been pre-prepared and strained with all the might that they could muster. Finally, the adversaries were thrown away from their opponents. Blackbeard then stepped through the sea of his men and came face-to-face with Jack.

"Ah, Jack Sparrow. We meet again."

"Edward Teach," Jack responded. "I see that no amount of defeat fazes you."

Blackbeard grinned ruthlessly. "I take it that you're here to collect the Bermudan Treasure. That, of course, I cannot permit."

Jack raised his sword to eye level. "Well, you're about to."

Blackbeard chuckled. "So sad. You're under the impression that you can actually beat me two times in a row."

"Well, Eddie, history seems to have a way of repeating itself."

Blackbeard stepped forward and gracefully rubbed his blade against Jack's. "Not today, I'm afraid."

Immediately, Blackbeard engaged Jack in battle, and the crews followed suit soon after. What had suddenly transpired could only be described as madness. Both sets of pirates were fighting a dirty fight, not caring about any certain rules or proper guidelines that may have existed. Swords were not the only weapon of choice, it seemed, as fists were hurtled against faces and feet against legs.

Elizabeth sported two swords, and she used them with expert precision. She blocked every blow with little effort and poured all of her effort into this fight. She and her current opponent wove in and out of other battling pirates, each one's aim never faltering. Elizabeth managed to drive her right foot down upon her opponent's, causing him to howl in pain. Elizabeth took her window of opportunity and landed a hard punch against the pirate's right cheek. She then dashed off as the angered brute gave chase.

Meanwhile, Will was engaged in battle with two of Blackbeard's men at once. His two adversaries landed each of their swipes and blows with even more force than the last. Will ignored the persperation pouring off of his brow as he concentrated hard on making it out of this fight alive. Will used his expertise in dueling to his advantage and soon found himself in possession of the upper hand. He pushed the two villains away and flipped the sword in his hand so that the side of the blade was now a weapon with which he could knock someone unconscious with. And that's exactly what he did as Will swung it against the first pirate's head without remorse. The force of the blow caused the pirate to stagger backwards a few feet, but amazingly not to be knocked unconscious.

Thinking fast, Will retreated a few steps until he had open ground surrounding him. The two pirates weren't far behind, though, as they were back on Will in a matter of seconds. Will fought them some more, swinging and arcing his blade back and forth without any signs of fatigue. After a few more moments of this, Will spied a log lying on the ground a few feet away. Without hesitation, he flipped in midair, rolling as he hit the ground. Once he was within range of the log, he clutched it in his free hand and launched it toward his nearest enemy. The savage was able to knock the large piece of wood away just a split-second before it connected with his face, but that was all Will needed. Taking advantage of his opportunity, Will jumped up and punched the pirate as hard as he could in the side of his face. After that, he proceeded to take him down with a forceful kick to the chest. _One down, one to go, _Will thought to himself. Immediately, he engaged his next victim.

A short distance away, Blackbeard was hard at work on trying to defeat Jack Sparrow. Every blow that Blackbeard landed, Jack was able to match it with ease. The pair was currently waltzing on whatever ground supported their feet, each pirate's gaze never wavering. Every now and then, one of them would lunge at the other, a desperate ploy to run their nemesis in. Suddenly, Jack spun around in a full circle and attempted to cause a deep gash in Blackbeard's face, but to no avail. Blackbeard caught the sword with his own and shoved Jack away. He then raised his razor-sharp blade over his head and charged down upon Jack. Fortunately, Jack was able to leap up and meet Blackbeard's blow, saving himself from any serious scarring. Even more angered, Blackbeard unleashed his raw, unstoppable amount of energy on Jack and used it to knock the bandanna-clad pirate to the sandy ground once more. Placing the tip of his blade at Jack's Adam's Apple, Blackbeard slowly bent down to retrieve Jack's sword.

Knowing that he had lost this particular battle, Jack sighed heavily and glanced over at his comrades. To his dismay, most of his crew was on the ground, the palms of their hands placed firmly on the top of their heads and their weapons in the hands of their opponents. The only two left still fighting were Will and Elizabeth and unfortunately, their luck seemed to be dissipating just as quickly. Finally, they too admitted defeat and silently surrendered.

Gloating, Blackbeard smiled down at Jack with a maniacal glint shining in his eyes. "Well, well. It seems that the great Captain Jack Sparrow has been defeated. Pity," he clucked his teeth.

"Don't get too overconfident, mate," Jack retorted.

Blackbeard sneered and raised his head. "Gents, why don't we show our new guests some generous hospitality. Take them back to the cave."

The crew obliged by grabbing each Pearl member and tightly binding their hands behind their backs after removing belts that carried any weapons. Anyone who obliged received a vicious blow to the gut, causing them to keel over in pain and personally be carried over someone's shoulder.

After replacing his sword back into its hilt, Blackbeard grabbed Jack's arm and roughly raised him to his feet. He then pulled out some rope, which he used to bind Jack's hands as best he could. "Let's see how much of a threshold for pain you and your crew truly have," Blackbeard whispered venomously into Jack's ear.

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Silence hung over the group of pirates as they trudged their way back to the cave that housed the Bermudan Prison. Each member of Blackbeard's crew kept forcefully shoving their captors ahead every chance they got. The pirate who had Elizabeth as his prisoner finally gave in to his dirty, lustful thoughts as he gruffly whispered in her ear.

"I notice that ring on your left hand. Tell me, poppet, you married?"

Elizabeth summoned up as much courage as she could when she replied with only one word. "Yes."

"Who's the...(the pirate gave her a once-over)..._very _lucky man?"

Elizabeth cleared her throat and gestured with her head over at Will. "Him. And he'll run you in many times once he gets the chance." She delivered those words with a strong sense of defiance.

"Will he now?" The pirate called over the brute holding Will's arm. "Hey, Bontas, do me a favor and give that boy a good hit."

Bontas nodded and punched Will hard in the stomach. Will reeled from the blow.

"Stop!" Elizabeth tried to wriggle herself free, but the pirate held her back. "No, no. You're not going anywhere."

Elizabeth glared daggers at the brute before bringing her foot down hard on his foot. He howled in pain as Elizabeth tried to run away, but he quickly regained his hold on her.

"So, you wanna play, huh?" The prowler pulled a cloth out from his pocket and placed it over Elizabeth's mouth. "I'll play with _you_, then." The criminal then grabbed Elizabeth and placed her over his shoulder, Elizabeth's cries of protest muffled by the cloth.

Anyone who tried to do something about this action, Will included, was immediately knocked unconscious and dragged the rest of the way. Meanwhile, Elizabeth's captor hungrily groped at any part of her body he could and after a few seconds, his right hand came to a rest firmly in the middle of her backside.

"We haven't come into contact with a winch such as yerself in quite a few years, so this is a certain pleasure I can't pass up."

Through her gag, Elizabeth repeated the word "winch" in a tone of shock and disgust and hit her offender hard in his back. In return, the pirate squeezed Elizabeth's left buttocks tightly.

"Protest all you want. My hand's not going anywhere else...for now, at least."

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After about half an hour, the group finally entered the prison cave. Behind them, the steel gate clanged closed with an echoing finality.


	12. The Bermudan Prison

Chapter 12

The Bermudan Prison had become dead silent. The only audible sound came from the crackling flames that lined the walls in torches. The sound almost seemed to taunt Jack, Will, and Elizabeth as they were led through the many dark and dank corridors until finally, they came to an abrupt halt outside a black wooden door. The guard who had accompanied the trio knocked hard three times on the door until Blackbeard's scraggly voice filtered through it.

"We're ready. Bring them in."

The guard twisted the large brass handle until a clicking noise reverberated off the walls, which allowed the door to be swung open with an eerie creak. What met Jack, Will, and Elizabeth's eyes only added to the overpowering sense of fear that was currently weighing down upon them.

From the room's appearance, no doubt was left in anyone's mind that this was indeed a torture chamber. Chains dangled from the stone ceiling above, swinging and clanging softly against one another in the faint howl of wind that was blowing through the solitary open window on the far wall. Since it was nighttime, the chamber was illuminated only by the torches resting in the sconeces nailed to the stone wall. Also, there was a deep red light emanating from a fair-sized hole in the floor. From the hole also came a sweltering heat which caused anyone to break out in a vicious sweat once they stepped foot inside. And to add to the sense of dread, there were pieces of stone here and there that were stained with both fresh and dried-up blood. Along the walls, guards stood with whips draped across their fingers, eager to put them to good use.

The guard behind them shoved Jack, Will, and Elizabeth inside with brute force and slammed the door shut behind them. Jack, whose hands were shackled along with Will and Elizabeth's, wiped his brow.

"Whew! What, are you gonna sweat us to death?"

"Oh, no. No, we believe in a more hands-on approach here inside the Bermudan Prison." Blackbeard gestured to two guards, who began to undo the shackles on Jack, Will, and Elizabeth's wrists. "You see, there is sort of a...tradition here. Every new inmate gets a fresh taste of how the rest of their lives will go from now on. And we do that by lashing them on the back until they give in to the pain."

The muscular guards then hoisted each of their captors' arms and placed them in the open iron holds before closing the new shackles tightly. The guards then ripped open the backs of Jack and Will's shirts, but left Elizabeth's untouched. Blackbeard smirked scarily as he glided to Elizabeth's side.

"I'm going to spare you some decency right now. It's what a true gentleman would do."

"Well your so-called _gentlemen_ personally violated my wife earlier!" Will's tone was unwavering as he spat those words at the giant brute leering over his love.

Blackbeard chuckled as he came to face Will. "You, don't believe in practical methods of persuasion, Mr. Turner?" Blackbeard laughed viciously. "You will. You will become a _true_ believer." Blackbeard then glanced up at a well-built guard who came up behind Will. "However, each of you have a chance to reduce your time in here by telling me one thing. How is it that you came by the treasure map?" Blackbeard gestured towards the map that lay folded up on a nearby table.

"What difference does it make to you," Jack barked out.

"Well, me and my comrades here are about to finish up our sentence of protecting the treasure. As it would anyone in our position, greed has gotten the better of us and we feel the strong urge to take it for ourselves. Whoever gave it to you, that would tell us how authentic the map is."

"You mean, you don't actually have a copy of the map," Will taunted him.

Blackbeard gave him a dark look. "Unfortunately, no. The goddesses didn't wish to give the protectors of these islands a map for they feared temptation of man. Every man becomes consumed by greed at some point in his life, whether it be for treasure or other...certain pleasures." Blackbeard looked over at Elizabeth as he uttered those two last words. "But, alas, that's exactly what's happened here, so we need authentication of the map." Blackbeard turned on his heel and gazed down at Jack. "Sparrow?"

Jack looked at the ground for a long time before he answered. He then glanced over at Will and Elizabeth, both of whom silently urged him not to say anything with just the desperate looks pasted upon their faces. Jack next looked behind him at the guards and then at pokers which were being held over the opening in the floor. Sighing deeply, Jack jerked his head back around to give Blackbeard the dirtiest look he could muster.

"You can torture us all you want, Teach. We're not saying anything!"

Blackbeard shook his head solemnly and sighed. "I was afraid you'd say that. However, everyone has a breaking point." He began to cross over to the other side of the room. "And during this session, we'll push each of you to that breaking point until you tell us what we want to know." Blackbeard turned his head to face the nearest guard. "You may proceed."

The guard grinned maliciously while he unraveled the whip in his hands and silently ordered the two other guards on either side of him to do the same.

Elizabeth looked over at Will, aware that this would be the second lashing he would receive in his life after the small incident on the Flying Dutchman. Will caught her gaze and took comfort in it as he conspicuously did the best he could to force his shackled hand as close to Elizabeth's as he could. Once it was within reach, Will grabbed Elizabeth's hand and grasped it tightly.

"Do you believe in God, Blackbeard," Will said, stalling as best he could.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because it's God who stays with you and gives you strength in times like these."

"Right." Blackbeard took a few steps toward Will. "I'll tell you what, let's make a deal. You call out for God and I'll stop the moment shows up." Blackbeard then sneered down at Will. "Start with the woman. See if her pain is enough to make her two friends confess."

"Yes, Cap'n," the guard behind Elizabeth grunted in response.

Blackbeard stepped back a few more steps with his hands behind his back as the guard prepared his whip. Growling as he did so, the guard raised the whip and sharply brought it down against Elizabeth's back. Elizabeth screamed out, her cries of pain echoing everywhere. She was lashed again, even harder, this lash beginning to penetrate her skin. Tears of white-hot pain started to seep out of her closed eyes, the cries of pain blending with her sobs of anguish.

"Excruciating, isn't it," Blackbeard sneered.

Anger consuming him, Will shouted. "LEAVE HER ALONE, YOU BASTARDS!"

"Silence him!" Blackbeard was sick and tired of resistance.

The guard behind Will immediately begun his torture as Jack's took it upon himself to follow suit. Now, there were three different cries of pain filling both the guards' and the prisoners' ears.

Outside in their cell, the Pearl crew listened helplessly as their leaders' pain became theirs.

Even though Jack, Will, and Elizabeth were on their knees, all of their legs still trembled from each unmerciful blow.

Before the lashes could cause any lasting damage or scarring, Blackbeard ordered his men to halt their actions. He then circled the room to come to stand right in front of his captors, each one of them gasping for breath.

"Ready to talk now," he asked rather politely. None of them spoke a word. "Very well."

Blackbeard walked over to the glowing red hole in the ground and pulled on the handle on one of the pokers that were suspended over it; when he pulled it from its handle, the point was blazing red. The tip had a shape that was used to engrave a symbol onto someone's flesh; this particular symbol being a crudely-shaped "B", which obviously stood for "Blackbeard". He smiled to himself as he went to stand in front of Elizabeth, whose face was stained with tears.

"We're directly over the pit of the volcano this prison is built over. So, as you can imagine, this poker is fiery hot at the moment." He grinned in a manner that suggested that he was amused with these current events. "Now, on whom shall I leave my mark?"

Blackbeard switched the poker into his left hand as his massive right one gracefully stroked Elizabeth's cheek. "Such lovely beauty," he cooed. The meaty hand soon worked its way down to her bosum, and Blackbeard didn't move on until he had gotten a satisfying grip of both of Elizabeth's breasts; Elizabeth shuddered under his rough grasp. "And such arresting features."

Will angrily fought against the firm hold of his shackles as he roared out in anger. Blackbeard glanced up at him, smiling.

"Ah, ferocious anger," he said as he moved on from Elizabeth. Blackbeard roughly grabbed Will's chin and brought his face up to meet his own. "And such rugged handsomeness."

The guards occupying the rest of the space laughed in amusement.

"And it would be such a pity to ruin either of those." He shoved away Will's face as he walked over to Jack. "However, you Jack Sparrow, are the one I intend to brand tonight."

Jack sneered up at his adversary. "You think you've beaten me for good? You're dead wrong, you slimy bastard."

Blackbeard clucked his teeth as he ripped open one of Jack's sleeves. "Ah, you seem to be free of a brand on this arm. Let me help you with that." Blackbeard raised the brand dangerously close to Jack's forearm. "One last chance. The name?"

"What name," Jack spat in disgust.

"The name of the person who gave you the map. Who are they?!"

Jack grinned defiantly, his gold tooth glinting in the torchlight. "Your mother!"

Blackbeard punched Jack hard. "TELL ME!"

"Why do you need authentication of the map anyway?"

"Because, Sparrow, the goddesses entrusted an entirely different person with the treasure map and that person handed it down through his generations. I need to be absolutely certain that this is the actual map!"

For a long while, Jack said nothing, just gazed up at Blackbeard in an unflinching manner. Finally, Jack spoke again. "I'll never tell you. Know why? Because me and my friends are gonna break out of here, find the treasure for ourselves, and send you and your crew down to Davy Jones' Locker."

"Don't be so foolish." With that said, Blackbeard brought the hot object down onto Jack's forearm, the sickening sound of sizzling flesh filling the air, as well as Jack's screams.

"Is that all you've got?" Even through the blinding pain, Jack managed to taunt his torturers.

Blackbeard removed the poker, revealing a fresh, hot imprint of the crude "B" on Jack's forearm. Blackbeard then tossed the poker away and calmed himself as he walked towards the nearest guards.

"You evil son of a bitch," Will snapped at him.

Blackbeard gazed down at Will as he came to a halt in front of him. Without warning, Blackbeard clutched Will's throat in a death grip and squeezed.

"You are in a position unsuitable to pass judgements on me, you foolish boy! So, you better watch your mouth, otherwise you'll soon find yourself unable to talk!" Blackbeard kept his grasp on Will's throat as Elizabeth wailed in protest.

"STOP! STOP IT! HE CAN'T BREATHE! STOP IT!"

Finally, Blackbeard released Will. As he stood, Blackbeard heaved a deep sigh before turning to his first mate. "Take these wretched pieces of filth back to their cell. I think they've had enough."

The first mate nodded as Blackbeard walked over to a closet, pulled out two shirts, and tossed them to the captain of the guards. "Give these to Sparrow and Turner. Their shirts are nothing but rags now. Oh, and they can have their overcoats back as well." Blackbeard scooped up the crumpled masses that were Jack and Will's overcoats and tossed to the captain as well.

Jack and Will begrudgingly replaced their torn-up rags with the fresh ones and pulled on their overcoats, both their gazes never leaving Blackbeard. Elizabeth, meanwhile, currently had her arms crossed protectively over her chest, her face still wet from tears.

As the door opened again, the guards didn't bother shackling their prisoners' wrists; they all knew the three of them were in no physical condition to try to escape. Just as much, the three good pirates willingly filed out of the room without being forced out in any way.

Once they had reached the trio's cell, adjacent to the one that held the rest of the crew, Jack, Will, and Elizabeth went in silently as the steel bars were loudly closed behind them. Once the guards had gone, silence once again filled the air. Not one person said anything; there was nothing to say and there was nothing no one wanted to say. In the cell next door, the crew silently respected their three leaders by not speaking about what had just happened at all.

After what seemed like an eternity, Elizabeth finally snuggled up against Will, wrapping her arms around him. She buried her face into his chest and wept, cried herself to sleep in his arms. Will found that he could do nothing except return the warm embrace, comforting his wife as he himself broke down into silent tears until he finally fell asleep as well.


	13. Tortuga

Chapter 13

Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins found himself truly disgusted at the town of Tortuga. The little town was immersed in madness, with brawls taking place both outside on the streets and inside almost every small building. People who weren't brawling however, were just resting on the sides of the street, pouring bottles of rum down their throats without stopping to take a breath; these people didn't seem to be concerned about appearances either, as the rum came down the fronts of their shirts sloppily.

The only reason Wilkins and his crew were here was to gain information on Jack Sparrow's current whereabouts, and they intended to leave the instant they had it. Suddenly, a man rolled on the ground in front of them from having been punched hard in the jaw. The attacker quickly chased after the rolling body, obviously stumbling with every step he took. Wilkins eyed the pair and rolled his eyes.

In order to avoid any unwanted trouble, Wilkins and the rest of his crew that had come ashore with him had conspicuously disguised themselves in civilian attire; the last thing they needed was an unnecessary outbreak of insanity on their hands. Soon, they came in front of the bar where almost every occupant of the village went to at night. Waters sized up the structure in one quick glance before inhaling deeply and entered, followed closely by his men.

The noise that filled the local bar could definitely not be described as merely a dull roar. The chatter and yelling in the room was almost deafening; Wilkins felt the urge to cover his ears, but decided against it. Wilkins pulled the hood of his cloak over his head while motioning for his men to do the same. Carefully weaving in and out of drunken pirates, Wilkins made his way toward the bar.

Noticing the new person, the bartender leaned in close to Wilkins. "Whadd'ya want," the bartender grumbled.

"Information," Wilkins replied cooly.

The bartender laughed condescendingly. "Information? Here, we serve rum, mate."

"Yes, I know. But me and my men crave something other than alcohol."

The bartender gave Wilkins a once-over before replying. "And what information exactly peaks your interest?"

Wilkins leaned in closer, as did the bartender. "Does anybody here happen to know Jack Sparrow's current location?"

The bartender shot Wilkins a suspicious look. "And who's askin'?"

Wilkins smirked. "Let's just say I'm a friend of his. Now, do you have an answer for me or not?"

The bartender leaned back a moment, clearly considering what to say to this total stranger. Finally, he leaned back in. "Yeah, I might know someone who's close with Sparrow."

"What's his name?"

"He just goes by "Smith." The man's a local inhabitant of Tortuga. Weird one, too."

"And where exactly can I find this...Smith?"

The bartender chuckled. "Not too certain about that, mate."

Wilkins gave the bartender a look that made it appear that he could see straight through him. "Are you sure about that?" His tone was deadly calm.

The bartender suddenly quivered, he guessed from how imposing this man suddenly appeared to be. "Uh...sorry. My mistake. Of course I know where he is. He usually goes back into the room back here to drink in peace." The bartender pointed with his thumb toward the door behind him.

Wilkins shot a quick glance at the door and nodded. "Thank you."

Wilkins and his men then made his way back towards the room. The bartender had the urge to protest, but decided to hold his tounge for his own safety. He could do nothing but watch in silence as the mysterious men opened the wooden door and entered the back room.

Once inside the small room behind the bar, Wilkins closed the door and turned to see a solitary man sitting at a table in the center of the room. The only source of light was the single candle situated beside him. The man looked up as he noticed the noise.

"Who are you all? And what exactly do you think you're doing here?"

"That's none of your concern," Wilkins said as he strutted up beside the man. "Smith, I presume?" Wilkins held out his hand.

Smith cautiously shook the man's hand, his curious eyes magnified by the giant spectacles sitting on his face. "Yes. And who are you?"

"Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins, from Port Royal." Wilkins gave Smith a polite smile.

"What can I do for you, Admiral?"

"Well it seems we share a common friend, perhaps you'll remember. Jack Sparrow."

The color immediately drained from Smith's face. "Alright, what has Jack done now?"

Wilkins hesitated slightly before answering. "It seems that Mr. Sparrow has kidnapped the daughter of the Governor of Port Royal along with her husband."

Smith inhaled then exhaled heavily. "Jack..." A question suddenly popped into Smith's head. "And what exactly does this have to do with me?"

"I've been told that you would probably know where Sparrow currently is. You see, that fact is of the utmost importance at the moment."

"And why exactly would I tell an Admiral the location of a known pirate? For all I know, you could be planning to execute him once you find him."

In one swift motion, Wilkins whipped his pistol, pulled the hammer back with his thumb, and aimed it at Smith. "That's _exactly _what I plan to do and believe me, I won't have any hesitation in putting a bullet through your skull as well."

Smith fearfully raised his arms. "Alright, alright. Jack is sailing to or most likely in the Bermuda Triangle at the moment."

Wilkins cocked his eyebrow. "The Bermuda Triangle? Why is he there?"

"He's looking for a legendary treasure. He more likely took the Governor's daughter because the presence of a woman is what's needed to sail into the triangle unscathed."

That was certainly more information than Wilkins was prepared to digest. His pistol lingered a few more moments until he was absolutely certain that Smith's confession was genuine. Finally, Wilkins lowered his pistol.

"Very well. Your help in this matter is very much appreciated. Now if I were you, I'd disassociate myself with Sparrow before your loyalty to him costs you your life."

Wilkins turned on his heel and quietly exited the room. Once every man had left and the door re-closed, Smith drained the rest of his drink.

"Bloody Navymen," he grunted.

Back inside the main tavern, Wilkins and his men efficiently made their way to the door. Their progress was impeded, however, by a man forcefully bumping into Waters' side. Upon instinct, Wilkins raised his pistol at the drunk.

"Watch where you're going, idiot," Wilkins spat.

Before he knew it, another drunk crept up behind Wilkins and forcefully wrestled the gun from his hands. Successful, the drunk landed a hard punch to Wilkins' cheek, causing the Admiral to stumble to the ground.

That one action was all it took. Immediately, the usual barroom brawl broke out. Other punches were landed, rum bottles were smashed over people's heads, and many bodies were flung from the staircase. Just as a crazed figure leapt off the balcony and started to swing like a monkey from the wooden chandelier, Wilkins picked himself up and along with his men, fled from the tavern and out to the ship just as a bottle of rum that was being gulped down by a pirate beside the door exploded from a bullet.

Good old Tortuga.


	14. The BreakOut

A/N: In celebration of the DMC DVD being released today over here in USA, here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

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Chapter 14

Elizabeth wasn't sure what had woken her up exactly, but she deduced that it was from the aching soreness emanating from her back. She opened her eyes to find herself wrapped up in Will's arm, his grasp as protective as ever. She looked up into his face to see that Will was still silently dozing. As she took in her surrounding features, it took a moment for Elizabeth to remember where she was: the Bermudan Prison. Upon realizing that, she grimly remembered the past day and the things that had happened to her, in addition to Will and Jack; the pain on her back suddenly made sense again. The lashing of the cruel whip used by the vile henchmen of Blackbeard; Elizabeth and her husband were now prisoners, and she currently could see no way they would ever be able to escape. For more comfort, Elizabeth cuddled as close to Will as she could.

Elizabeth thought that she might go back to sleep again when a sudden sharp pain pierced her stomach. At first, she did her best to keep her mouth closed, but after a few more moments of the searing pain, she couldn't help but let out a small cry. The noise awakened both Will and Jack, and Will immediately went to her aid.

"Elizabeth! What's wrong, luv?"

"N-nothing," she choked out as the pain began to subside. "Just a little...stomachache, that's all." She breathed in some air.

"Are you sure," Will questioned, his voice laced with genuine concern as he softly stroked her hair.

"Yes, Will. I'm sure." Elizabeth gave him a knowing look.

Will instantly caught on. "Oh. Alright. If you're sure..."

"Yes, I'm sure." Elizabeth leaned in closer and kissed him lightly. Will and Elizabeth gazed into each other's eyes, both of their expressions filled with sympathy. They couldn't help but embrace each other tightly after a while.

From his seat on the floor across the cell, Jack eyed the couple with a questioning look. "Pardon my interruption, but am I missing something here?"

Will and Elizabeth broke apart and once again studied each other's eyes, silently attempting to decide whether or not to tell Jack. Finally, they both came to a conclusion.

"You know, I don't very much appreciate being left in the dark on things, so if you two would be so kind as to fill me in...?"

"Very well," Will spoke up. "You see, Jack, Elizabeth and me decided early on in our marriage that we would wait for the right time to start a family. Recently, we came to the conclusion that we were finally ready."

"And as it turns out," Elizabeth continued for him, "I've lately begun to notice certain...things happening with me. Things that only happen to pregnant women."

Jack looked from one to the other, appearing amused with the good news. "Well, congratulations to you both." He paused a moment. "However, I think both of our concerns are one in the same. How can you have a child in prison?"

As Jack said those words, a lump began to form in Elizabeth's throat, and she found herself unable to stop the torrent of emotions that came pouring out of her. She immediately grabbed Will, pulled him close, and sobbed into his chest.

"You're right," she said in between sobs, "we'll never have the chance to be proper parents. Blackbeard may even kill our baby once it's born!"

Will consoled her by hugging her, rubbing her back, and rocking her back and forth. "Shhh...shhh. It'll be alright, sweetie. We'll find a way to escape, I promise."

It stayed like that for a few more moments, until Jack spoke up again.

"I'm sorry," he uttered.

Will looked up at him through his own minor tears. "What," he croaked.

"I'm sorry. Sorry for dragging you two into this mess, sorry for allowing us to be captured and tortured. I should have never come to you for help on this. You were living happily in Port Royal until I came in and took you away from it in one fail-swoop. I can understand if you aren't able to forgive me." Jack hung his head solemnly.

For a few moments, Will and Elizabeth sat there, staring at Jack in stunned silence.

"Jack...," Will sputtered, "you...you've never been that...honest for as long as we've known you."

"Same here," Jack's father piped up from the cell next door.

"Well, I never imagined that things would go this far," Jack confessed. "In fact, we're all sorry. Right?" he turned to face his crew.

"Yes," every crew member said in synchronization.

"Argh, that's right!" Cotton's parrot added in its usual manner.

"Thank you. All of you. That really means a lot to us." Will and Elizabeth each looked gratefully from one pirate to the other, smiling for the first time in quite a while.

Jack even cracked a smile himself before glancing around at the outer space of the holding room inconspicuously, searching for one of Blackbeard's guards that may overhear him. Seeing none, Jack turned his head back around.

"Obviously, if there was a chance that we could escape, you two would be with me on it, right?"

Will and Elizabeth eyed the mysterious captain before nodding. "Yes, of course."

"Exactly what I wanted to hear, because I believe that I have a plan."

Pleased at the thought of escaping the dreadful prison they were in, Will and Elizabeth leaned forward, eager to hear more. "Go ahead," Will said.

"Alright, here's how it is. Last night I woke up for a moment and was lucky enough to hear Blackbeard discussing something with his crew. Apparently, a ship was spotted just on the horizon last night, and that means there'll more likely be new inmates coming here today. So here's my plan: The moment Teach and his crew depart to meet their new guests, we create a scene that'll leave the guard left behind to watch over us with no choice but to try to help one of us. The moment he unlocks the cell door, we knock him out, take the keys, retrieve our possessions from the torture chamber along with the map, find the treasure, come back here to settle things, and finally ride off into the horizon to take you two lovebirds home. Savvy?"

Will and Elizabeth briefly glanced at each other. "Yeah," Elizabeth replied, "sounds simple enough."

"Excellent. Just stick to the plan and before you know it, you'll be back in your cozy, overstuffed mansion raising your dear, sweet child."

"And you're certain this will work," Will inquired.

"Have you forgotten who you're speaking to, mate? I'm Captain Jack Sparrow."

"So, all we have to do is wait for them to go capture the ship?"

"Exactly." Jack turned to face his crew. "Sorry, mates. But this plan only has any real chance of succeeding if just Will and Elizabeth come along. Everything's understood, right?"

"Of course it is," James smiled. "Go ahead and get the treasure. We won't be going anywhere." As he said those words, James grabbed the iron bars firmly and tugged, reminding everyone of their strength.

Two hours had passed, and finally Blackbeard and his crew had suited up, prepared to greet their new batch of victims with welcome arms. As he passed their cell, Blackbeard grinned smugly at Jack, Will, and Elizabeth.

"Don't go anywhere. We'll return shortly."

Blackbeard and his men cackled maliciously as one of them pulled on a small lever that lifted the huge iron gate; within a matter of seconds, the ruthless pirates had exited the cave, leaving only one guard behind to monitor the prisoners.

Jack turned to Elizabeth and gave her a curt nod. "You're up," he whispered.

Just as they had discussed, Elizabeth clutched at her stomach in fake pain and keeled over on the floor, yelling in mock grief. Will then did his part by immediately going to his wife's aid, questioning her condition. Jack grinned to himself as he spun around and shouted out to the guard.

"Oy, thickhead!"

Just as Jack had anticipated, the guard responded to the remark.

"I think we need some help over here! We don't know what's wrong with her!"

The pirate looked from Jack to Elizabeth, and then back to Jack.

"Well, what're you waiting for? C'mon!"

Reluctantly, the guard crossed the room and came to a halt in front of the cell, fiddling with his keys. Finally, the pirate came across the right one, slid it into the lock, and swung the door open. The guard made to help Elizabeth, but didn't get too far, though, as Jack whipped the sword from the brute's hilt and brought the handle down over his head.

"Your concern is both touching and appreciated. Thanks, mate." Jack looked over toward Will and Elizabeth. "Are you coming or just waiting for an invitation?"

"One moment," said Elizabeth. The pirate at her feet was the one who had sexually harassed her earlier, so she kicked him many times before taking his pistol from his belt and then running off with Will and Jack.

Once all three of them were out of the cell, Jack pulled the iron door shut and re-locked it. He paused at the next cell.

"We'll be back for all of you after we obtain the treasure. Don't wander off."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," said Gibbs sarcastically.

Jack, Will, and Elizabeth then scurried down the many hallways, halting at each corner in case any other guards were lurking about. At one of the corners, Jack turned his head to look at Elizabeth. He eyed the loaded pistol that she grasped tightly in her fingers.

"I feel the need to ask if you know how to use that thing?"

"I know how to use it better than you know how to use it," Elizabeth shot back.

Jack gave her a brief look. "Good enough for me," he said finally, before taking off around the corner.

Soon, the trio reached the torture chamber, where their necessary weapons and the treasure map were located. Each one of them strapped on their belts and slid their swords and pistols into their proper place. They then searched the room until they found a couple of fairly shaped shovels. After that, Will scooped up the treasure map from Blackbeard's table.

"He's confident enough to leave the map out in the open like that?"

"Of course. All of his crew members know better than to cross Edward Teach or they'll find themselves floating around in Davy Jones' Locker."

Will nodded. ""Now, let's get out of here."

"Not without my hat," said Jack as he retrieved his beloved three-cornered hat from a nearby hanging pole protuding from the stone wall.

Jack, Will and Elizabeth soon found themselves racing once more through the maze of halls and corridors of the cave until they finally ended up where they had started.

The guard was still locked unconscious in the cell and the crewmates were silently cheering them on. Jack firmly grasped the lever that was used to lift the steel gate and he pulled with all his might. After a few moments of heaving, the gate finally lifted and Jack, Will, and Elizabeth ran out of the prison.

Once outside in the fresh air and radiant sunlight, Jack quickly scanned the area, making sure that no one was headed their way. However, they did have a direct view of part of the ocean, where two ships currently floated. Dead silence hung in the air, until the ship on the right suddenly exploded in an orange blast that caused a shower of wood to rain down into the sea. Blackbeard had apparently just rounded up a few more prisoners. Wanting to avoid the forthcoming pirate crew's return, Jack whipped out the map, unfolded it, and scanned it over.

"Well, it seems we're blessed with a bit of good luck. All we have to do is head straight north 50 feet and we'll happen to be right on top of the treasure. Come on, let's not waste time."

The trio then sprinted ahead, determined to reach their goal without any problems. Not one of them looked back.

Back inside the Bermudan Prison, Gibbs was pacing back and forth in great strides from one side of the cell to the other. James looked at him from his comfy spot on the ground.

"Relax, Gibbs. I'm sure they'll find the treasure."

"But what if Blackbeard gets to them first?" Gibbs couldn't quite keep the tone of worry out of his voice.

"C'mon. You know that Jack doesn't give up without a fight. They'll be far away from here once Blackbeard and his crew return." He turned around to eye the guard in the cell beside them. "Besides, Jack should be the least of your worries right now."

Gibbs halted. "Oh? Tell me, what should I be concerned about, then?"

"How we're going to explain the absence of Jack, William, and Elizabeth to the guard over there. He's waking up."

James was indeed correct, because in the cell next door, the knocked-out guard slowly stirred as he regained consciousness.


	15. The Treasure Uncovered

Chapter 15

The iron gate of the Bermudan Prison creaked as it was raised upward. Once it was fully raised, Blackbeard and his men led a group of fresh prisoners who were trembling uncontrollably inside. All of their wrists were bound by rope that appeared to be wrapped around the wrists of the captured sailors so tight, that it wouldn't have come as a surprise to find out that the ropes were cutting into the flesh. After Blackbeard ordered his first mate to take them into the torture chamber, he turned his head and was met with a confusing sight. One of his guards was locked inside Sparrow and the Turners' cell, although there was no trace of the three pirates anywhere; it was as if they had vanished into thin air. Enraged, Blackbeard stormed towards the cell, unlocked it with his key, and stepped inside.

"What the bloody hell happened," he barked.

The guard was clearly dazed from something that had currently transpired. "I...I don't know. The last thing I remember is that Turner woman appearing to be in pain and when I went to help her..."

"Yes?" Blackbeard's temper was nearing the danger level.

"Sparrow must have knocked me unconscious once I stepped foot inside this cell."

Blackbeard's eyes seemed to flare as he switched over to the next cell. "Did any of you know that they were planning something like this?"

"Well, I'm afraid not," James spoke up. "You see, sir, we must have been dozing off when it happened."

Blackbeard stepped dangerously close to James. "And something like that wasn't enough to wake you?"

"Apparently not," James replied with a smug grin.

Blackbeard said nothing, just nodded. He sighed as he glanced around, until suddenly, in one lightning-fast movement, Blackbeard drew his pistol and fired a shot off into James' left arm. As the bullet collided with the flesh, bits of blood sprayed from the fresh wound and James grabbed his arm in pain.

"Rule number one," Blackbeard seethed, "_never _lie to me. Because as you can see, the consequences are not pretty at all."

Blackbeard left James lying on the stone floor, holding his bleeding arm in agony. Blackbeard returned to the other cell and stood directly in front of the guard.

"You will go out with a few of the other crew members, and none of you will return until you're in possession of both our escaped prisoners _and_ the treasure."

"The treasure, sir?"

"Yes, Sparrow and the Turners have obviously gone after it, so I think it'll save us loads of trouble if we just let the three of them do all the hard work for us."

"Yes, sir."

"And you realize, of course, that if you don't succeed, you'll have used up all of your value to me." Blackbeard raised the barrel of his smoking pistol to eye level.

"I understand, Captain. But may I make one request?"

"And what exactly would that be?"

"Let me and the crew have a little...fun with the wench. You've seen her, she could certainly be of _far _greater use to us."

The faintest hint of a smirk crossed Blackbeard's face. "And what of her husband?"

The pirate shrugged. "Kill him. That way, he won't be an obstacle when we're enjoying the wench's company."

"Bring me what I want to me, and the woman is all yours."

A malicious expression invaded the guard's face as he ran to collect some men to go after the escaped convicts.

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Meanwhile, Jack, Will and Elizabeth were in the middle of the island, carefully counting paces toward the treasure's location. Anticipation began to build up inside of Jack as he stepped the last few paces until finally, he was standing in the center of the location where the red "X" of the map was drawn. Jack didn't notice this, but the closed eye in the top right corner of the parchment had suddenly opened magically. Jack stopped dead in his tracks and turned around to face Will and Elizabeth.

"It appears we're right over the treasure. How fortuitous."

"Let's just dig up the treasure so we can go back to free the crew as soon as possible," said Will.

"Agreed."

Jack then tucked the map safely in his breast pocket before getting a better grip on his shovel, digging it into the layers of sand beneath their feet. Will and Elizabeth quickly followed suit.

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Blackbeard stood before his many stooges, silently sizing them up, weighing his options on getting the treasure. Finally satisfied that these men could get the job done, Blackbeard turned to the leader of the group.

"You have your orders. Do not make your move until you are absolutely certain that the treasure has been dug up from its resting place. After that, re-capture our prisoners, but don't kill them. At least don't kill either Sparrow or Mr. Turner just yet, the woman will serve far greater purposes once she's brought back here."

"Aye, Cap'n." The pirate turned to address his men. "Gents, time for a stroll."

The group of pirates chuckled as they each grabbed necklaces that held blood-red stones, which dangled off each of their necks. They made three swift rubs over their stones with their thumbs, and once they were done, something awe-inspiring transpired.

The bodies of each pirate soon began to writhe and their flesh bubble sickeningly. The sound of cracking bones filled the air as well as cries of pain. Faces were dramatically molded and shifted graphically into horrifying shapes. Each person's set of teeth became fangs and their eyes merely black dots. The crew of Blackbeard had taken their demonic forms, consumed by an insatiable thirst for blood. Blackbeard eyed each creature in delight.

"Go and have some fun," he grunted.

The creatures let out sounds of approval as each one of them took off at an inhuman dash. Jack, Will and Elizabeth were about to have some unexpected guests.

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The shovels were forced once again down into the sand and whatever was scooped up tossed away. The heat of the bright sun was beginning to really bear down upon Jack, Will, and Elizabeth as they continued digging into the ground, wiping the sweat from their foreheads at different times. Slowly becoming frustrated, Elizabeth turned her head to face Jack.

"How much more of this do we have to put up with," she asked him.

"Stop nagging and keep digging. I promise what we'll find will be worth all of this," Jack replied.

"That line's becoming old, and quick," commented Will.

"You know what, I..." Jack's voice trailed off as the tip of his shovel suddenly collided against something hard, causing a sound of hollowness.

The trio looked at each other before digging more furiously around the place where the sound had came from. Within a few minutes, more sand had been cleared away, providing a perfect view of a dark brown chest nestled in the middle of the hole. Immediately, Jack, Will, and Elizabeth tossed their shovels away and placed each of their hands on a proper vantage point.

"Ah, the anticipation," said Jack.

Each one of them heaved, as they strained under the weight of the heavy chest. The trio lifted the chest to ground level, and dumped the chest onto the ground beside them.

Jack wasted no time in picking up his shovel and using it to break the rusted lock on the front. The lock broke, and Will pulled it out of its hole.

"Moment of truth," breathed Jack.

Gracefully, Jack placed his fingers on either side of the lid as Will and Elizabeth came up behind them. Then, carefully, Jack raised the lid with his eyes as big as saucers; Jack, Will and Elizabeth leaned forward to get the best view possible.

The sight that met their eyes was simply jaw-dropping. There, inside the treasure chest, sat mounds of gold, jewels, rubies, coins, and silver; each piece glinted almost heavenly in the bright sunlight. The treasure pieces certainly seemed to have fallen directly from the heavens, each piece appearing to have the personal blessings of a god. If there was any treasure that proved on its own how man could become possessed by greed, this was it.

Jack placed both his hands inside the chest, grabbing as many pieces of treasure that his palms could allow. He then brought them up to eye level while he let the pieces pour back down into the large chest, all the while a goofy grin glued to his face.

Jack glanced up at Will and Elizabeth, both of whom had bewildered expressions plastered on their faces; Will's eyes were huge and Elizabeth's mouth slightly hung open.

"Told you it'd be worth the wait," Jack said to Elizabeth.

"It..." Elizabeth attempted to form a coherent response, "it...it's amazing."

"Yeah, not bad." Jack turned back to face the treasure.

"I can't believe it," breathed Will. "I can't take my eyes off it!"

"Me neither," Jack grinned.

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A few feet away, the group of pirates were hidden inconspicuously behind palm trees and large walls of grass. They smiled scarily as they got a glimpse of the treasure. Now was the time to strike.


	16. Treasure Battle

Small Disclaimer: In the middle of the chapter, Jack does something during the battle that I must admit, I got from the classic "Raiders Of The Lost Ark". Those who're familiar with it will recognize it. Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest. Happy Reading.

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Chapter 16

Reluctantly, Jack closed the lid to the treasure chest. He stood up and looked at Will, who nodded as they both grabbed a handle on either side of the treasure chest and lifted it with all their might. Carefully, they brought it over to rest under the protective shade of a palm tree. Once they had dropped it back onto the ground, both Jack and Will wiped the sweat from their brows. After that, they plopped down onto the sand to recess from their difficult task for a moment; Elizabeth came over to join them. However, not one of them seemed to notice the charging horde of creatures until the beasts were practically upon them.

"Oh, give me a break!" Jack jumped up while drawing his sword, as did Will and Elizabeth. They brought their blades up just in the nick of time as their foes swung their own swords down. Each of the trio strained under the enormous weight of the vicious pirates until they themselves had enough strength to force the monsters away. Now with a little bit more space, Jack, Will and Elizabeth backed away, swords still clutched between their fingers and ready for battle.

The monsters/pirates charged again, this time with more fury. The swordfight started up again as the trio re-engaged their opponents with just as much force.

Jack swung his blade back and forth while spinning around in circles, which allowed him to take on as many pirates as possible. He shoved the nearest one away with the sole of his boot, which caused a domino effect that made every other brute behind the first fall over in rapid succession. Jack then raced over to secure the treasure, but was halted by another vicious scoundrel. Jack began to maneuver his blade up and down, left and right as he and his opponent danced to the clanging of metal. As Jack's sword collided hard with the pirate's, the force of the blow gave Jack the opportunity to shove the opposing blade away. Jack then landed a hard punch to the face, causing the bandit to stagger backwards a few steps. Enraged now, the beast charged Jack, but apparently wasn't quick enough as Jack jumped up, caught hold of a branch, and swung his feet forward just as his enemy was close enough. The pirate fell to the ground, and Jack took the chance to knock him unconscious for good. Satisfied with himself, Jack rejoined the rest of the battle.

Will and Elizabeth were currently double-teaming a group of bloodthirsty savages. Each of them helped out each other, improving on any weakness their partner showed. Will stepped forward, back, forward, then back again, matching his adversary's each and every move. When the creature attempted to try and chop off Will's legs, Will's reflexes kicked in as he leaped into midair before his feet returned to solid earth. The pirate then grabbed Will's arm as he forced his blade upon Will's and they both began to step around in continuous circles and many other different shapes. Finally, the pirate pushed Will away, and then ran at Will full-force. Acting quickly, Will ran towards a tree trunk, placed his feet firmly against it as he ran up a few steps and finally flipped clear over the brute's head and landing safely back on his feet. Immediately, the scoundrel swung his blade towards Will, but to no avail; Will easily blocked every move. Finally, Will spun twice, bringing his elbow up to slam into the pirate's face at the very end of the second spin. Smiling to himself, Will ran over to help Elizabeth.

Elizabeth had already taken down two pirates and was currently on her third. She showed no mercy in each blow she landed, her agility and reflexes as sharp as ever. Will suddenly popped up beside her and they worked together to bring down the creature. In synchronization, Will and Elizabeth each sliced their blades into the chest of the wraith's chest, forming an "X". The pirate then fell over dead. The moment the body hit the ground with a dull thud, two more pirates ran up on either side of Will and Elizabeth. Will and Elizabeth both gave each other a look, smirked, nodded, and then leaped back as one just as both pirates plunged their swords into the spot where Will and Elizabeth had stood moments before. But instead of simply slicing into thin air, the tips of each blade pierced the skin of each creature, killing them instantly. Will and Elizabeth both raced into the rest of the chaos.

At the same time, one of the transformed figures cautiously approached the treasure chest. But before he could even place his fingers on the wooden surface, a big rock collided hard with the side of his head. From a few feet away, Jack smiled as he raced over to the chest.

Meanwhile, Will and Elizabeth were surrounded by dozens of attacking pirates who were rapidly closing in around them by the second. But just before anyone could make their move, something huge and hard collided with the heads of a few of the pillagers. Will and Elizabeth glanced up to see Jack using the chest as a weapon, violently swinging it back and forth in front of him in an attempt to defeat many numbers at once. Will and Elizabeth both recognized their means of escape and took it without hesitation after inconspicuously removing two whips from the belts of two of the pirates distracted by Jack's antics. As the pirates turned back around to take care of their victims, sudden confusion invaded their minds. The two humans were gone! Desperately, the beasts began to swipe their swords into the long grass, hoping that they would come into contact with human flesh.

They didn't notice this, but behind them, Will and Elizabeth stood, whips grasped tightly in their palms, with the ends of the leathery ropes tied around the branches of the trees directly over them. A split-second later, Will and Elizabeth were in the air, flying towards the backs of their unsuspecting opponents. Their feet crashed into the backs of the pirates, sending them flying a few feet away.

Will and Elizabeth then landed back on the ground, and were met with the sight of even more approaching pirates. Immediately, Will and Elizabeth recoiled the whips and threw the ends toward the many blades. Just as they had anticipated, the whips wrapped around the swords, and Will and Elizabeth tugged, causing the weapons to come soaring towards them. They caught the blades by their hilt and ran straight at the defenseless pirates as they scattered in fear.

At the same time, Jack was facing a brawny pirate who had a sword the size and width of our blades combined. The monster chuckled as he showed Jack his skills by flipping and twisting the large sword in many different maneuvers until he finally brought it to rest right in front of him. For a moment, Jack just looked at him with an expression that just screamed out "Oh please!" After that, Jack sighed heavily as he pulled out his pistol, aimed it, and fired. The bulky brute fell to the sand in silent shock as the bullet made its way through his exposed flesh. Jack then smiled triumphantly as he replaced his pistol with his sword.

A few feet away, Will and Elizabeth were battling two more vicious pirates. Both of them swung their blades in many ways, attempting to beat their opponents with little effort. However, the two villains managed to shove the young couple to the ground as they each removed a small bomb from their belts and lit the fuses. Then, the plunderers thrust the explosives with all their might, screaming viciously. Will and Elizabeth managed to dive away from the explosives just in time, as two palm trees suffered from the blast. The shockwave caused Will and Elizabeth to go sprawling once again on the sandy ground as their opponents slowly advanced from behind. Will and Elizabeth scrambled away on their backs until a large wooden log halted them. Both of the young pirates looked up at their salvation and smiled, jumping up sharply. After making their way behind the log, Will and Elizabeth pushed with all their might against it until the log began to slowly but steadily roll. As it gained enough force, the log rushed forward until it trampled the two defenseless pirates. Will and Elizabeth breathed a sigh of relief, but not for long though, as the two beasts slowly got to their feet; one pulled out a pistol and fired off a shot, which landed in the bark of a tree just to the right of Elizabeth's head. As one of them bore down upon her, Elizabeth slashed her sword, timing it just right so that it connected with her adversary's at just the right moment. After a few more moments of relentless dueling, Elizabeth saw an opening and took it as she kicked the pirate's sword into the air and caught it. This did not seem to faze the brute, however, as he charged forward; Elizabeth easily grabbed him by his shoulders, shoved him up against a tree, and punched him full in the face. The pirate slumped to the sand.

Jack was currently very busy, as he was dueling an inhuman adversary. The monster was surprisingly swift in his movements, matching each one of Jack's with ease. Jack didn't seem to see a way out, but a dumb-luck moment presented itself once again as Jack spotted the large hole in the ground right behind his rival. Smirking, Jack kept lunging forward until he had forced the pirate to go clambering down into the hole.

"Tough luck, mate," he commented.

Jack turned to see the current condition of the treasure chest. At the moment, another one of Blackbeard's cronies was cautiously approaching it. Jack's eyes widened as he ran up behind the pirate and swiftly knocked him unconscious with the hilt of his sword. As Jack knelt down, Will and Elizabeth rushed up to his side.

"We need to get to a safe place," said Will.

"I second that," Jack agreed, replacing his sword and firmly grabbing one handle of the chest. Will picked up on this and efficiently did the same.

"You're gonna have to serve as our protection, luv," Jack told Elizabeth.

Elizabeth nodded as she stepped in stride with her two comrades, sword leveled in front of her.

At the same time, the three remaining pirates charged the trio, blades raised high over their heads. Once they were close enough, Elizabeth engaged them without hesitation. All four blades were a blur as they all made their way across the lush land. Finally, Elizabeth managed to hit the closest pirate in the face with her hilt and knocked the other two swords away in one clean swipe. Elizabeth smiled before bringing the two heads together full-force; the pirates immediately slumped to the ground. Sighing deeply, Elizabeth replaced her sword.

"You know, for a woman you're not half-bad." Jack gave Elizabeth a roguish grin.

"Just keep going," she said.

As the trio made their way to a safe location, one more pirate poked his head up from the tall grass. This particular one had stayed behind to be prepared for a situation just like this; if the prisoners made an attempt to escape with the treasure. The beast made a dash for his victims in an instant.

Jack, Will, and Elizabeth never saw the pirate racing towards them until it was too late. He sprinted up behind Elizabeth, grabbing her around the waist and placing his blade at her neck while transforming back into his human form.

"Drop the chest and back away, or she dies!" It was the guard that Jack had knocked unconscious back inside the prison.

Jack and Will began to make an attempt to do something, but the guard tightened his hold on Elizabeth. "Ah, ah, ah. I won't hesitate in killing her." The looter's tone was unwavering.

Jack and Will held his gaze for a few long moments before finally obliging and placing the chest onto the ground and backing away reluctantly.

"I thought as much," the pillager hissed into Elizabeth's ear. "That they would do anything to protect you."

"Poor judgement on your part, I must admit," Elizabeth shot back before forcefully stepping down hard on the brute's foot and then swinging her arm into his face. The pirate lost his grip on Elizabeth, occupying his hands with rubbing his sore face.

Elizabeth made an attempt to run away, having underestimated her attacker. But through the wave of pain, the marauder whipped out a piece of thick string with heavy balls on either end, swung it over his head, and threw it toward Elizabeth's legs. The weapon wrapped itself tightly around her legs and brought her crashing to the ground. The guard then raced over to her, forcefully grabbed her neck, and brought it up while placing his blade at her throat once again.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" The pirate turned Elizabeth's head so that she was looking directly into his soulless eyes. Elizabeth spat in the villain's face. The buccaneer wiped the moisture from his eye and looked up towards Will and Jack.

"Toss me your swords. Now."

With hateful expressions plastered across their faces, Jack and Will did as they were told. The bandit smirked as he scooped them up before taking Elizabeth's. The guard then dragged Elizabeth over to the chest and grabbed it. He then held out his muscular arm.

"Grab on," he growled.

Jack and Will gave each other a look before obliging. Once they had a firm hold, an odd feeling immediately took them over. It was like they had been pulled forward rather hard by some inhumanly strong hands and dropped back down onto the ground forcefully.

Once again on level ground, the trio glanced around at their new surroundings; they had arrived back at the entrance to the Bermudan Prison. In front of the gate, Blackbeard and a few other men stood waiting for them.

"Did you actually think that you could escape from me?" Blackbeard clucked his teeth. "It would seem that your previous punishment didn't have the anticipated effect."

He approached the treasure chest. "However, I must say that you did a rather commendable job of locating the treasure. Saved us a lot of trouble." Blackbeard motioned with his hand for two of his men to take the treasure chest inside, which they did. "To the victor go the spoils, I'm afraid." He eyed Jack and Will. "Solitary confinement for those two for the rest of the day. As for the wench," he faced Elizabeth, "I believe I promised you some fun, Mardas. Do what you wish."

"NO!" Will leaped out, grabbing a sword from a nearby pirate's scabbard. "You will not lay another finger on my wife!"

A pirate jumped forth and attempted to disarm Will, but Will was already anticipating him. As Will threw him away, he didn't notice another rogue creeping up behind him, bringing the hilt of his sword down hard on Will's head. Every pirate laughed viciously as Elizabeth called out his name.

"Will!"

Two pirates grabbed Will's limp form and dragged him inside to a solitary confinement cell. As that transpired, Blackbeard bent down to face Jack.

"You've tested your luck long enough. You're hereby sentenced to execution at dusk one week from now."

"Shove it, you hairy git!"

"Take him away," Blackbeard ordered.

As his order was carried out, Blackbeard walked over to Mardas, who was currently holding Elizabeth.

"Whatever it is that you plan on doing, do it out here."

"Yes, Cap'n."

Blackbeard smirked remorselessly as he entered the cave, leaving Elizabeth alone with her few captors.

"Fun time, poppet."

Mardas forcefully shoved Elizbeth into the waiting hands of the grouped-up pirates. The hands caught her as she screamed in protest at the top of her lungs. Every hand hungrily grabbed at every inch of her body, snaking their fingers all the way down from her breasts to her bottom, up and down every inch of her legs and midsection and back again. Mardas stepped forward and grinned evily; he grabbed her shirt and began to take it off. Elizabeth's shoulders were soon exposed and then the tops of her breasts, but before Mardas could go any further, a swift noise halted him. Mardas' expression soon transformed from one of deep lust to one of utter shock. Confused, Elizabeth glanced down to see a small dagger protruding from his left side. An instant later, Mardas coughed up a downpour of blood and collapsed to the ground.

Elizabeth looked to her right and relief immediately came pouring back into her soul. Will was standing there, sword outstretched in one hand and pistol loaded in the other. Will raised the pistol and shot the pirate currently holding Elizabeth. He then leaped forward and plunged his blade into the remaining three's hearts.

Elizabeth stood shell-shocked for a moment as she came to her senses while Will pulled her shirt back up over her shoulders and then enveloped her in a warm embrace before kissing her tenderly. Finally, words came.

"How did you...?"

"Regained consciousness rather quickly and came to save you. Come on, we need to get away from here."

He grabbed Elizabeth's hand and quickly led her away from the cave.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"I think the Black Pearl is still moored to the island. We can climb aboard, get properly armed, and come back here to save the crew."

"And the treasure?"

"That's only secondary at the moment."

With that, Will and Elizabeth raced away into the lush expanse of trees to the shore, where the Black Pearl was currently moored.


	17. Sharing A Moment On The Black Pearl

A/N: Expect more frquent updates between now and Christmas; I want to try to finish this before then, due to the fact that I'm getting a brand new laptop for Christmas and want to start writing the rest of my saga on that. Anyway, enjoy!

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Chapter 17

The _Cutlass _was said to be the fastest Naval vessel in the Caribbean, and that title was certainly appropriate in this instance. The ship had made excellent time in reaching the Bermuda Triangle. Night had fallen over the shallow waters, and the _Cutlass _was only inches away from crossing the threshold.

Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins stood at the mast, gazing confidently out at the heavy wall of fog looming before him. Wilkins had heard the stories about the Bermuda Triangle; that it was the place where every ship disappeared and was never heard from again. Also known as the Devil's Triangle, the vortex was considered a haunted area, filled to the rim with tortured souls of pirates who had entered the territory. Of course, Wilkins didn't believe any of that rubbish; in the back of his mind he knew that there had to be some sort of logical explanation behind all of the myths and legends. And tonight, Wilkins intended to discover just that in addition to capturing the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow.

The tip of the ship breaking through the ominous barrier jarred Wilkins from his thoughts. As his vessel went further inside, a sudden gush of cool air blew out each of the lanterns hanging in different locations all around the ship. Shrouded in momentary darkness, Wilkins made his way toward the railing of the ship. As Wilkins gazed out at the impenetrable blanket of fog, a feeling of uneasiness started to well up deep down inside of him; it was then that Wilkins wondered if sailing into the Bermuda Triangle had been such a good idea after all.

Another strong gush of wind blew, sending Wilkins stumbling back a few feet. Behind him, Sykes approached.

"What do you make of all this, Admiral?"

"Just a blustery evening, that's all," Wilkins replied evenly.

Seconds later, the lanterns flickered back to life, only to go back out again as the fog subsided. Wilkins and Sykes were met with the sight of the moon reflecting off of the crystal-clear ocean and eerily illuminating many islands scattered about everywhere as far as the eye could see.

"How do we find Sparrow, exactly," Sykes asked Wilkins.

"Simple," Wilkins replied. "We just look for an island that has a ship with black sails moored to it."

"Which is hard to spot during the dead of night."

"Still, I want to make this as quick as possible."

Just then, the ship lurched forcefully, as if it had been pulled backwards by a rather strong hand. The sudden action caused Wilkins and Sykes to go sprawling onto the main deck.

"Did we hit a reef?"

"I don't know."

Navymen came pouring out onto the deck in that instant, curious to discover what exactly had caused the unexpected event. The soldiers scrambled to the sides of the ship, trying to spot any evidence in the ocean below.

As Wilkins and Sykes slowly rose to their feet, something else happened. It started as an earsplitting crack, but the noise soon gave way to the ship's deck breaking entirely in half down the middle. The now cut-in-half ship soon began to sink down into the depths of the dense water, dragging everyone onboard with it. There were a few who managed to get a hold of part of the sinking mass, but they all too soon lost their grip and plummeted into the chilling tide.

Below the remaining men, the ocean started to bubble violently and soon the water began to swirl in constant circles, creating a whirlpool. The whirlpool's force pulled the ship down faster with each passing second. Wilkins commanded his muscles to hold on tighter in order to climb higher, but the battered wood of his ship was too weak to support his weight. Beside him, Sykes finally lost his grip and plunged down into the icy depths. Once Sykes had vanished beneath the black ocean, Wilkins resumed his attempt to escape his imminent fate. As he grunted pulling himself upward, the sound of consecutive creaking filled Wilkins' ears. He glanced sideways and noticed the wood he was currently holding was slowly falling apart. Wilkins' eyes suddenly glazed over with fear and only seconds later, with a sickening crack, the wood of the destroyed ship gave way at last, sending Wilkins tumbling down into the massive whirlpool, his screams drowned out over the rush of water.

The last thing Wilkins remembered before losing consciousness was the feeling of a torrent of water attacking his body. And even after he broke the whirlpool's barrier, Wilkins' body continued to plummet down into an opening in the seabed.

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Will and Elizabeth knew that they were close to the shore because the sound of waves crashing against the sandy ground had become clearer. They both shoved bushes and low-hanging branches from their path until finally, clear land presented itself. Moonlight illuminated the vast shore before them and provided a clear view of the Black Pearl, still moored to the land and intact, just as they had left it.

Heaving deep sighs of relief, Will and Elizabeth raced forward as if trying to outrun some invisible opponent. Once they had reached the gigantic lines of rope that were holding the vessel still, Will and Elizabeth looked at each other.

"Time to climb," Will said.

"Not a problem," replied Elizabeth.

Will and Elizabeth firmly grasped a line of rope each before leaping up and wrapping their legs around them. They then began to make their steady incline upward, inching closer by the minute. The amount of strength that the feat demanded caused Will to pause momentarily in an attempt to let his muscles relax, if only for an instant. He glanced over to check on Elizabeth's status and was surprised to see that his wife was making more progress than him, as she was currently closer to the deck than he. Smirking slightly, Will continued on with the harrowing climb.

Elizabeth was the first to reach the main deck and she helped Will with the few remaining inches he had left. Now safely aboard the Pearl, both glanced around at the dim deck. Will made his way downstairs, with Elizabeth close on his heel, to the cabin that contained the ship's weapons. The first thing Will did was to light the candles and lanterns scattered about the room, providing him with the necessary light that was needed to carry out his actions. Once every source of light had been lit, Will made his way over to a fairly sized cabinet that stood up against the wooden wall. Will opened the cabinet to reveal a line of rifles neatly lined up one after the other. He removed two from the line and closed the doors. Next, Will went about properly loading the long, heavy weapons and retrieving extra ammunition.

"You can't plan on going back there now," said Elizabeth.

"Why not?" Will asked evenly.

"Well, for one, it's the dead of night."

"Which only contributes to the element of surprise."

"But it could be more dangerous at night!"

Will sighed. "Elizabeth, listen. If we have a chance to go back and free the crew from their terrible fate, I'm going to take it the first chance I get. If someone were to die tonight, and we were too late in saving them...it would be too much to bear."

Elizabeth moved closer to him. "I understand that. Really, I do. But if _you_ were to die tonight while trying to save Jack and everyone else, I couldn't go on with the rest of my life."

While Elizabeth said those words, Will could do nothing but stare down at the floor in silence.

"I've known and loved you for many years now, and I know that you are a noble man who must do everything to protect the ones closest to you. But please, I'm begging you...as your wife, the woman you can never stop loving, wait until morning when you've had time to plan out a strategy."

"I don't need a strategy. I just need to save the crew before Blackbeard kills them." Will turned to leave, but Elizabeth grabbed his arm and held him back.

"Will, please. I love you too much to let you walk in there blindly when there's a strong chance that you might get killed."

Will stared back at her. "Are you holding me back because you don't have confidence in me?"

Elizabeth felt her jaw drop. For a moment, she was at a loss for words. "Will..." she whispered. "How...how could you ever think that?"

Will looked away.

"I'll _always_ have confidence in you, no matter what. But can't you see that attacking right this instant isn't necessarily the right thing to do? I care about you too much to just let you risk your life like this. But if you can't see any other alternative plan, and you believe this is the right time to go in there, then I won't stop you. Just know that in nine months we'll have a child to raise and I can't bear to think that our child could grow up without a father. Just...just think for a moment about what you're planning to do and how soon you wish to do it, that's all. I'm begging you to do that, as your wife."

As silent tears began to well up inside Elizabeth's eyes, she turned away, going to the window. Will stood there, cursing himself for being so blind. He didn't even consider the fact that Blackbeard may have guards roaming the perimeter of the prison, just waiting for Will to make his move. Will had jumped the gun on his decision, and he couldn't believe that he would have acted upon his instincts so fast.

Will slowly made his way over toward his wife, cautiously approaching her from behind. When he was close enough, Will wrapped his arms around Elizabeth's waist almost tentatively, part of him anticipating some sort of resistance. But instead, Elizabeth turned herself around in his arms while putting hers around his neck and burying her face within his chest.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth," Will whispered. "I shouldn't have been so impatient. I just want to go home and live a normal life and not have to deal with pirates anymore."

"Me too," said Elizabeth, looking up deep into his eyes.

"I know that you have confidence in me. And of course I have confidence in you, as well. I always have; without you, I probably wouldn't be where I am today."

They stood in silence for a few more moments, just holding each other and enjoying the other's warm embrace.

"You're right," Will finally said. "We should wait until morning to go back. So, we need to get as much rest as possible, come on."

Will tenderly wrapped his fingers around Elizabeth's and guided her to their private quarters on the ship. Once they had arrived there, Will plopped himself down on the bed as Elizabeth got in beside him and snuggled up as close to her husband as possible. They didn't even bother changing out of their piratical attire, they were too exhausted for that. Will and Elizabeth just laid there until the curtain of slumber slowly and surely enveloped them.

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Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins awoke uneasily. There was a throbbing pain in his skull and a rough surface pushed up against his face. As he opened his eyes groggily, Wilkins spied his dark surroundings. He was currently in a cell along with a few of his men, who were still unconscious. The space located outside of the iron bars was dimly lit by torches lining the wall. Wilkins had no idea how he'd gotten here; the last thing he remembered was a freezing sensation...he wasn't entirely sure what it had been.

Wilkins curiously glanced over to his right to see an adjacent cell, which was also filled with a group of people. These were no doubt pirates, and at that time, the scruffiest of the bunch was facing Wilkins.

"I'd start to pray if I were you," he said.


	18. The BreakIn

Chapter 18

"They escaped," repeated Blackbeard in a chillingly plain tone. His sword was clutched in his right hand in a death-grip.

"Y-y-yes Cap'n," the guard stuttered. "We found all five men dead. One shot, and the other four stabbed."

"You don't think the Turner woman did all that by herself?" a nearby henchman asked.

"Of course not," Blackbeard waved off the question. "Mr. Turner obviously escaped his captors and saved his wife before retreating elsewhere."

"But where are they going? We have the treasure."

"But their ship is still tied to the shore," Blackbeard growled. "I surmise that they'll be going there to get properly armed for an attempt at a rescue mission. They are coming back for the crew, no doubt." Blackbeard paused a moment. "In that case, establish a perimeter. I want guards stationed outside the gate at all times."

"Of course." Blackbeard's first mate turned to give his men the orders.

"Wait," Blackbeard called out. He swirled around to see his men staring at him obediently. "There's something more important at the moment."

Without warning, Blackbeard whipped out a small palm-sized bomb, lit the fuse, and tossed it at his cronies' feet. Upon instinct, his men scurried away in fear just as the tiny mechanism exploded violently. Some men stumbled to the ground from the force of the blast.

"That's a reminder for you to stay on your toes," Blackbeard grunted. "You never know when someone will attack."

"Aye," every pirate mumbled at different times.

Blackbeard eyed his men with both anger and confusion. "Well what are you still doing here? You have your orders, get to it!"

The henchmen obliged without hesitation as they scurried out of the dimly lit area, not wanting to endure another one of Blackbeard's sadistic tests.

Will woke with a jolt. Upon opening his eyes, he noticed that Elizabeth was no longer curled comfortably in his arms; on the contrary, she was currently strapping on every necessary weapon for their planned overtaking of the Bermudan Prison. Will quickly rubbed the sleep from his eyes and got to his feet.

"I see you're ready."

Elizabeth turned to face him, tossing him a loaded rifle; he caught it. "What's the plan?" she asked.

Will took the time to put the rifle's leather strap over his shoulder before answering. "We go to the outskirts of the prison and decisively take down any patrolling guards. Then, we find a way to break in and free the prisoners."

"All of them?"

"Yes. Even though the rest of the prisoners may be pirates, they're still innocent people and none of them deserve a fate such as the one they face here."

"But how are we going to get all of them off the island?"

"I'm sure Blackbeard keeps all of the ships that they haven't destroyed in a secret location somewhere. We find that place and make sure each of the ships cross the threshold successfully."

Elizabeth nodded.

"I only hope we're not too late in saving the crew, though. There's no telling if Blackbeard's killed any of them out of anger."

"Then we'd best hurry."

For the next few moments, Will and Elizabeth finished preparing for their harrowing task looming ahead of them. When they were both finished, Will turned to face his wife.

"Elizabeth...," he began, "if...if anything should...just...I love you. Know that."

Elizabeth nodded in understanding and tenderly took his hand. "I've known for many years. I love you too."

"Let's just promise to watch each other's backs as best we can," said Will.

"Agreed."

Will and Elizabeth gazed deep into each other's eyes before pulling the other into a deep, loving kiss that lasted for a whole minute. After that, they embraced each other tightly.

"I just remembered," Elizabeth spoke up, "Blackbeard sentenced Jack to execution!"

"When?"

"In one week, but I'm positive that he'll move it up to now when we make our move."

Will contemplated those words for a moment. "Wait, don't you remember? He told us that Tia Dalma granted him immortality when we rescued him from the Kraken two years ago."

Elizabeth's eyes widened as she recalled that fact. "That's right," she breathed. "But...if Blackbeard discovers that, what's to stop him from simply killing another crew member?"

"You're right. We need to make haste. Let's go."

With that, Will and Elizabeth departed from the Pearl, racing back towards the volcano that housed the Bermudan Prison.

On the outskirts of the prison, two guards dutifully patrolled back and forth outside the entrance, rifles slung across their shoulders and swords clenched in between their free fingers. Both pairs of beady eyes penetrated the lush surroundings of the forest, trying to locate any warning of a surprise attack; they currently saw none.

Suddenly, one of the pirates stepped on the center of the twig, causing the piece of bark to snap. The noise caused the plunderer to slightly jump in surprise, jerking his rifle out readily in front of him. After having realized that it was nothing, the marauder exhaled in a low whistle and smirked to himself, shrugging the sensation off. As he continued to make his rounds circling the prison's perimeter, something unexpected happened.

A shot rang out, piercing the dead silence, and a sharp pain in the pirate's side accompanied it. Moaning, the outlaw allowed his hand to shakily touch the area of the wound, and when he brought it back up, the flesh of his hand was stained blood-red. Before he knew it, the looter slumped to the ground.

The other guard immediately noticed this and made an attempt to fire back a shot in the direction the original had come from, but he was too late. A split-second later, two bullets had lodged themselves deep into the brute's chest, causing a pool of blood to form on his front. An expression of pure anger was etched on his face as the pirate fell into the mixture of grass and sand.

For the next few seconds, all was quiet, except for the distant sound of the ocean being carried all the way from the shoreline. Finally, two figures emerged from a thick gathering of small bushes. Will and Elizabeth scanned the area for signs of any more opposition and thankfully found none. They took the time to reload their heavy weapons with more gunpowder before inconspicuously making their way over to the huge iron gate that blocked the entrance.

Will quickly summed up his options, taking every possibility into consideration. His eyes surveyed the inside of the prison just beyond the gate and they fell on the huge lever on the left side. Thinking fast, Will pulled out a piece of strong rope. He then examined the size of each square-shaped hole the gate formed and looked back at the rope draped over his palms. Coming to a decision, Will efficiently formed a loop with the end of the rope and carefully brought it through the nearest gap with a tight grip around it. He then took careful aim and tossed it towards the handle of the lever with just the right amount of force.

As planned, the loop closed around the lever; Will smiled to himself. He then turned to face Elizabeth, holding out some of the rope.

"Help me tug," he said.

Elizabeth took the rope without a word and grasped it tightly.

"Ready," Will breathed, "one...two...three."

On the count of three, Will and Elizabeth pulled the rope with all their might. They visibly strained under the amount of work it took, sweat starting to form on their brows. Finally, after countless minutes of tugging, the lever inside slowly moved forward until a dull click sounded. Job complete, Will hastily pulled the rope back towards him while the iron gate slowly lifted up. Once the gate had been fully raised, Will and Elizabeth looked at each other.

"This is it," said Will.

"And here goes nothing," Elizabeth replied.

They dashed forward, halting on either side of the entrance. They glanced at each other and nodded. Will and Elizabeth raised their rifles to eye level and cocked them while peering carefully around the stone walls. Seeing no signs of anymore guards, Will and Elizabeth darted inside, rifles raised in front of them.

The couple cautiously scanned the area for trouble as they slowly moved forward through the main entrance space. Prisoners looked up curiously from inside their cells, desperately hoping that Will and Elizabeth had come to save them. They rushed up to the iron bars and followed the duo's gradual progress; Will and Elizabeth silently motioned for them to keep quiet. But just then, a voice called out their names.

"Mr. Turner? Mrs. Turner?"

Will and Elizabeth shot confused looks to their right. In the cell they were scrutinizing, a weary looking man gazed back at them through iron bars.

"Who are you?" Elizabeth questioned in a whisper.

"Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins," replied Wilkins. "Your father sent me and my crew to come rescue you."

"Rescue us?"

"Yes. You were last seen in Port Royal fleeing in the presence of a known pirate named Jack Sparrow."

"_Captain_," Will and Elizabeth corrected in unison. "Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Of course," Wilkins rolled his eyes. "But the fact of the matter is, he kidnapped you and we've come to take you back home."

"Jack didn't kidnap us," Will snapped. "We voluntarily agreed to accompany him on a quest."

"And look where you ended up." Wilkins gestured with his hands around the cave. "How are you sure that Sparrow isn't in fact working with the pirates who control this prison?"

"We know Jack too well," said Elizabeth. "He couldn't possibly betray us like that."

"With all due respect, Mrs. Turner," Wilkins persisted, "have you forgotten how he tricked your husband onto the Flying Dutchman two years ago?"

Immediately, Elizabeth's eyes darkened.

Wilkins smiled. "I thought so. Now, just find a way to release me and my men, and we can all return to Port Royal safe and sound."

Will and Elizabeth were quiet a long moment. Finally, Elizabeth spoke up.

"No. We have to save Jack and the crew first."

"Mrs. Turner, please don't waste your time on Sparrow."

Just then, a guard rounded a nearby corner and spied the intruders with shock. He made to draw his pistol, but Will had already fired his rifle. As the guard's body fell to the floor, Elizabeth raced forward and removed the keys from the belt tied around his waist. She then dashed over to the cell containing the Pearl crew and unlocked the steel gate. Gibbs and Marty raced out.

"Where did they take Jack?" Will questioned.

"A solitary confinement cell," Gibbs answered. "Down that hall." He pointed to a dimly lit corridor to their left. Will nodded and motioned for them to follow.

"We'll be back," said Elizabeth as she closed the cell door once again. She then rushed off after her comrades.

"Mr. Turner, Mrs. Turner! Come back!" Wilkins' cries went unheard.

As the foursome slowly made their way down the corridor leading to the solitary confinement cells, Elizabeth kept looking over her shoulder to see if they were being followed. Finally, narrow doors presented themselves along the walls. Will immediately began to slide back each of the wooden slits that provided views into the cells until at last he found Jack's. Elizabeth handed Will the keys and he unlocked the door.

As Jack looked up to see who was standing in the open doorway, a slight grin formed on his roguish face.

"It's about time," he said. "I've been waiting for you a whole day."

"Well sorry for formulating a strategy before just blazing in here with our weapons drawn!" Elizabeth fired back.

"Which is precisely what you're doing at the moment," smiled Jack as he joined his rescuers. "So, are we going after the treasure?"

"Do you know where it is?" Will asked.

"Of course. A secret room down the hall. You'll need a..."

Will dangled the keys in front of him.

"Oh. Then, well done, mate!"

As Will and Jack retreated back out into the corridor, a pirate of Blackbeard's suddenly came down the corridor and spied the group; his eyes widened.

"INTRUDERS! INTRUDERS!"

Jack raced forward and punched the brute squarely in the face. The guard fell back against the wall, his nose gushing blood.

"Oh, shut it!"

A dull thud came from the entrance to the corridor and Jack looked up to see Blackbeard and a few of his men running at full-pace towards the Pearl members. Will leapt forward and assisted Jack in carrying the guard into the room at the end of the corridor, shutting the door just as Blackbeard and his men reached it.

Inside the room, Will looked around and saw the treasure chest lying on a small stone pedestal located in the center of the small space. He nudged Jack, who turned around and grinned.

"What'd I tell you?"

Suddenly, the locked door slightly burst forward but remained intact. The roar of Blackbeard's rough voice soon filtered into the room.

"We know you came back for your friends, Mr. and Mrs. Turner. So just surrender now and we'll let you all walk free."

Will scoffed at the offer. "You're lying through your rotten teeth, you heartless demon."

A small pause followed.

"Alright, listen. If you don't come out of there by the count of ten, we're blasting down the door one way or the other. One..."

"Not so fast, Eddie." Jack stepped closer to the door. "We may be willing to compromise."

"Are you, now?" Blackbeard sounded amused.

"Yes. We have a proposition for you."

Will and Elizabeth both gave Jack a confused expression. "We do?" Will asked.

"Yes."

"What is it?"

"I have no idea."

Will and Elizabeth gave each other an uncomfortable expression.


	19. Abrupt Tragedy

A/N: I know that I promised to update daily, but things got in the way and I was unable to. Anyway, here are the next two chapters to make up for it. What I'm going to do now is wait until I've completed the few remaining chapters and then post them all at once. So, this story could be complete by the end of this week.

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Chapter 19

"What is it you have in mind, Sparrow?" came Blackbeard's rough growl.

Jack waited a few seconds before giving his reply. "We can come to a...mutual agreement. What say you to that?"

"It depends on what you're offering."

Behind Jack, Will and Elizabeth paced uncontrollably across the expanse of the room. Gibbs leaned worriedly against the treasure chest while Marty stood over the still bleeding guard, holding a small dagger.

"What exactly _are _you offering?" Will asked in an undertone.

Jack silently waved off the question. "What I'm offering," he shouted to Blackbeard, "is a deal in which both of us get what we want."

A short pause, then: "Go ahead."

"Alright. Here's my proposition. You let us walk out of here without any of your men in our way, give us back our ship, and we sail off safely into the horizon, leaving the treasure here with you and you can do whatever you want."

"Interesting..." Blackbeard commented. "But how are you so certain that I'll be willing to let you walk free?"

"Well, here's some incentive for you. If you go against the plan in any way, I'll have no hesitation whatsoever in sending your beloved treasure down to the depths. After that feel free to grow gills and search for it all you want."

Through the heavy barrier, everyone in the room was still able to hear Blackbeard's exasperated sigh.

"You only have one chance, Teachy. Take it or leave it," Jack chided.

"I want confirmation that the guard of mine that you have inside with you is still alive."

"Of course," Jack answered. He strutted over to the guard, picked him up, and dragged him over to the door. Jack nodded to Elizabeth, who caught on and unlocked the door. As the door swung open, Jack brought his pistol to rest against the guard's temple.

"Here he is. Still breathing...satisfied?"

"You broke his nose, I see." Blackbeard's men were all currently aiming pistols and rifles in Jack's direction.

"He left me no choice," Jack replied. He looked at the weapons currently pointing at him. "If you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you could tell your men to lower their guns. I don't very much like being put on the spot like this."

Blackbeard nodded and raised his hand as a signal for his men to put their weapons at rest; they all did as they were told, but rather begrudgingly.

"Now," said Jack, "do we have a deal or don't we?"

Blackbeard smirked. "I'm afraid I need some time to mull things over. After all, I want to make the proper decision, don't I?"

"Yes, you do. How much time do you need?"

"That depends. I'm going to retire to my private office for the time being and leave a guard posted at the doorway to make sure that you don't attempt anything stupid."

"Oh, c'mon, Teach...Have I ever given you reason not to trust me?"

Blackbeard shot an icy glare in Jack's direction.

"Right," Jack said. "Well, take all the time you feel is necessary. I mean, it's not like we'll be going anywhere anytime soon, eh?"

With that, Jack retreated back into the small room, the guard still in tow.

"Don't trust him, Cap'n," the guard pleaded.

"Silence," spat Blackbeard as the door shut once again.

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Back in his private office, Blackbeard sat in thoughtful silence, contemplating his options in the current situation. He sighed deeply and finally swung his legs off of his desk and rose to his feet, making his way towards a guard standing at attention.

"The secret room that Sparrow and his fellow pirates are in happens to be located on ground level. I want you to sneak outside and stand by the window that looks into it; I want to know what Sparrow is doing at all times."

"Yes sir," the guard grunted before rushing out of the dank office.

"Are you really intending to go through with this, Cap'n?" Blackbeard's first mate asked from a dark corner.

"I must admit that I'm not entirely sure at the moment, but I assure you that if Sparrow attempts anything foolish, then I won't hesitate in taking the right course of action."

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Meanwhile, Jack and the rest of the crew that were currently in the room that housed the Bermudan Treasure were starting to get anxious.

"To tell you the truth, Jack," Will spoke up, "I don't really trust Blackbeard to fully carry out his side of the bargain."

"Neither do I, mate. But if anything should happen, rest assured, we'll find a way out of this."

"Once we get out of the Bermuda Triangle, don't expect us to join you on anymore of your quests after this," said Elizabeth.

"Sure. You say that now," Jack grinned.

"We're serious, Jack," intoned Will. "Elizabeth and I are ready to start a family, thus leaving our lives of piracy behind us."

"I respect your words at the moment, but I'm afraid that there'll always be circumstances outside your control that will prompt you to come back to me."

"We'll see about that."

Jack smirked and made his way over to Marty, who was still standing guard over the captive henchman. Jack knelt down beside him.

"How's our big ol' lummox holding up?"

"He seems to be cooperating just fine," the small man commented.

Just then, the guard leapt forward, tackling Marty to the ground. During the confusion of movement, Jack lunged forward and grabbed the pirate around his collar, pulling him back. Once Jack had brought his captive back, he placed his sword at the brute's throat.

It wasn't until Jack heard Elizabeth's gasp of horror that he realized what had happened. He looked at Marty, who was still laying on the ground, only now he had a deep red gash in the center of his chest. Gibbs immediately rushed to Marty's aid, tearing the front of the dwarf's shirt wide open.

The wound that the pirate had made with Marty's own dagger was deep, and Marty was quickly losing blood. Gibbs ripped a portion of his own shirt and placed it against the gash in a pitiful attempt to stop the bleeding, but it wasn't working. Marty was gasping for air desperately, but with each passing second, he seemed to slip farther and farther away from life.

Will and Elizabeth stood rooted to the ground, shell-shocked at what had just transpired. Nobody in the room said a word as Marty took his last few breaths of life before silently dying on the cold stone floor. The next few seconds were accompanied with an eerie silence that seemed to tear at everyone's heart.

It was finally broken by Elizabeth's sobs as she stood there, unable to control herself. Will did not hesitate in taking her gracefully into his arms as she cried over the loss of a close friend.

Meanwhile, Jack angrily squeezed the guard's throat in attempt to kill him. But before he could, Gibbs came up and rested a firm hand on Jack's shoulder.

"Don't do it, Jack," he said solemnly. "He's not worth it."

Jack reluctantly, and slowly, released his grip. But without warning, he landed another hard punch to the pirate's already bloody face.

Across the room, Will continued to console his wife. He tenderly cupped her face within his caring hands and gazed deep into her eyes.

"Elizabeth, sweetheart, I know that this has got to be a little rough on you, but please, don't lose control over yourself. You couldn't have stopped it."

"I know," she managed between smaller sobs. "But even though I feel bad about this, I also can't help but feel deeply angered at Blackbeard. I just...want to cause him as much pain as he's caused us." Elizabeth gently touched Will's chest.

"You listen to me, we're going to get out of here safely. I promise you that."

Elizabeth then leaned forward and kissed Will passionately a few times before hugging him tightly.

Jack walked up to them. "I think we need to find an alternative plan." He started to glance around the room; his eyes finally came to rest on the small window carved into the far wall. "That window is our best bet. We'll take the treasure with us, re-bury it somewhere, and then storm this godforsaken place and get our crewmates so we can sail out of this hell."

"Okay," said Will.

Jack, Will, and Gibbs converged on the treasure chest, picked it up, and slowly made their way over to the window with Elizabeth close behind. Once they had reached the window, the three men gently put the chest down and Jack used the hilt of his sword to shatter the glass. Job done, Jack, Will, and Gibbs regained their firm hold on the heavy object and raised to the window's level; Elizabeth even contributed to the effort as best she could. Then, the good pirates managed to shove the chest out the window, the sound of a dull thud as it hit the grassy ground followed only seconds later.

After that, the four comrades climbed out of the window, one right after the other. When they arrived outside, however, a grim surprise awaited them.

Once each of the Pearl members had set foot on the earthy surface, they turned around and came face-to-face with the tips of many swords that glinted dauntingly in the bright sunlight. Soon, an all too familiar voice reached their ears.

"I suspected as much. I just knew that you would go sour on your offer, Sparrow." Blackbeard grinned mercilessly with his own sword raised in front of him.

"Blame your guard," spat Jack. "He killed one of my men, which caused us to resort to this new plan."

"Well, it seems that it was a feeble one. You seem to cause too much trouble on this island, so I believe that I shall move up your execution to right now. And I think your little friends here have earned the right to die by means of decapitation as well."

He nodded to three of his men, who immediately stepped forward and bound each person's hands behind their back after promptly removing any weapon that was visible.

"It's time to make a little trip to the execution cave. Let's take a walk, shall we?"

Blackbeard then turned on his heel and began to head toward a nearby cave. Every one of his crew followed, with a few shoving Jack and his friends forward while another select few grabbed the treasure chest and dragged it along with them.

But despite the situation, Will managed to suppress a small grin as he inconspicuously fingered a small dagger, which rested secretly in the very back of his belt.


	20. Arguement

Chapter 20

The carriage came to a halt in front of the Blacksmith's Shop. The driver hopped down from his seat and made his way to the carriage door and pulled it open. Governor Weatherby Swann stepped out from the small space and onto the dusty road. He glanced around momentarily, briefly taking in Port Royal's current state before slowly entering the shop, almost reluctantly.

Once inside, Governor Swann halted in the open doorway, staring gravely at the back of "Bootstrap" Bill Turner. Swann and Bill had spent some time getting to know each other in the past two years, mainly because their children were married to each other. Over that time, both men had discovered certain similar interests and had discussed them lively. Because of that bond, the men had become quite close friends, so Swann dreaded being the bearer of bad news at the moment.

Noticing a new presence in the room, Bill turned toward Swann. Upon seeing who it was, Bill smiled warmly. "Weatherby! What can I do for you? Need a sword re-sharpened?"

"Er...not quite." Swann hesitantly stepped closer to Bill. "Bill...I...I'm afraid there is something you should know. Something rather important."

"What is it?" questioned Bill.

"Why don't we sit?" Swann gestured towards a pair of chairs sitting in the far corner. He and Bill made their way over to them and sat in silence for a few seconds. Finally, Bill spoke up.

"Weatherby, I can tell something's bothering you. Just come out with it. You can rely on a friend like me."

Swann nodded and sighed before getting on with it. "Bill...uh...how long has it been since you've last seen either William or Elizabeth?"

Bill gave Swann a slightly confused expression and shrugged. "Last time I saw them was on their anniversary. Both of them seemed quite happy."

Swann bit his lip and stared down at his feet.

"Why are you asking me about this anyway?"

Swann forced himself to look back up and continue. "Well, you see...the reason that I ask is because...a little over a week ago...both William and Elizabeth were kidnapped by Jack Sparrow."

The news caught Bill totally off-guard. "Kidnapped? By Jack Sparrow?"

"Yes," Swann replied in a grave tone.

"But...but I don't understand. Why would Jack kidnap two of his closest friends?"

"I have no idea."

Bill hesitated before persisting. "Well...do you have any leads on where they're headed?"

"I'm afraid not. All of it happened rather abruptly."

Bill jumped up from his seat and began pacing back and forth across the room. "I trust you sent some men out to find them?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, it's just...this is a lot to take in right now. Have you at least gotten word back from your men on their progress?"

"No, actually. For some reason they've suddenly gone quiet. I've no idea of their current condition."

Bill slammed his foot into the ground with force. "Then how the bloody hell do they expect us to stay calm in a time like this?!"

Swann got up from his seat and put a friendly hand upon Bill's shoulder. "Listen, I'm sure I'll get word back from them soon. And I assure you, once I do, Sparrow will be sentenced to execution."

Bill looked at Swann in surprise. "Execution?"

"Of course," said Swann. "Why would you think differently about that? Sparrow's a criminal and he _must _be brought to justice, one way or the other."

"Weatherby, you know that I once served on the Black Pearl under Jack's command. So pardon my resistance at your proposition of sentencing Jack to death for a crime you're not even sure he committed."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I mean, for all you know Jack could have been taking them to the Pearl so that they could assist him in one of his adventures."

"Oh, please! That's the last thing I wish to hear!"

"Well you're going to hear it! I know Jack too well to even entertain the notion that he kidnapped both our children for no apparent reason!"

"Oh, yes. I forgot. You're a pirate, so you would side with one of your own."

Bill's eyes flared with anger. "How dare you! How dare you treat me with such disrespect on my own grounds!"

"I'm the governor of this town, might I remind you! I can bloody well call you what I wish to call you!"

Bill glared daggers at Swann a few more moments before finally shouting once again. 'Get out! Now!" He stabbed his finger towards the open door.

Swann waited a few seconds, and finally departed swiftly from the shop without another word. After the door closed, Bill went back to his duties, but applied more force to the things he was doing.


	21. Cave Battle

Chapter 21

The Execution Cave that was situated only a mile away from the Bermudan Prison had the ability to send a ghastly chill running down the spine of anyone who so much as glanced at its haunting appearance. The height of the structure stretched so far up that the jagged and deformed pieces of rock that shot up from the ground completely covered the sun, casting an ever-present shadow over the area of land that surrounded it. The front of the cave sported huge gashes and holes that seemed to form the shape of the face of a screaming ghoul; something that seemed darkly appropriate. The land at the tip of what could be considered the mouth abruptly stopped, giving way to a body of water, which seemed out of place at the center of a landmass. On the surface floated a few longboats, which were moored to the sandy land; these longboats were obviously the means of transportation that were used to take the doomed prisoners, along with their executioners, inside the cave, where their fate awaited them.

As the small congregation of pirates approached the cave in a steady procession, the sunlight that had been beating down upon them only moments before abruptly ceased, shrouding everyone in a gloomy shadow. Elizabeth glanced up to see a sharp-looking spit of corpulent rock blocking the sun's rays of light. She then looked over at Will, who had his head down and his eyes occupied with the mixture of sand and grass. At the moment, Elizabeth needed comfort and confidence to soothe her overpowering feelings of fear and regret and she silently pleaded Will to lift his head and gaze deep into her eyes with his. She needed Will to give that same reassuring expression that calmed her nerves every time he gave it to her.

Finally, Will did look up. But instead of giving Elizabeth the expression she was expecting, he grinned at her, almost as if he was rather enjoying the situation. Elizabeth gave him a confused expression and in return after Will winked slyly at her.

Next, Elizabeth eyed Jack, who was staring ahead confidently. From the look in his eyes, it appeared as if Jack were ready to face death full-on. But then again, Jack was basically immortal, so he had nothing to fear. But Elizabeth did; she had everything to fear and everything to lose.

What she had was a loving husband and a baby growing inside of her. Elizabeth never thought that she would lose both this way. Forcing herself to stay stable, Elizabeth fought off the wave of sadness threatening to envelop her and she looked over once more at Will.

She mouthed to him, "What can we do?"

In return, he mouthed back, "I have a plan. Trust me."

After those silent words, Elizabeth curtly nodded with a firm inconspicuous smile forming on her face as relief and hope came flooding back through her veins.

As a small ray of sunshine managed to betray the impenetrable rock, the light danced ever so slightly off of something stuffed into the back of Will's belt. Elizabeth recognized it immediately as the hilt of a small dagger, and she slowly came to fully understand the meaning of Will's last words.

As they finally reached the longboats and hopped down into them, a new emotion entered Elizabeth's feelings: anticipation. Now, she couldn't wait to once and for all be rid of Blackbeard and his rotten crew of filthy brutes.

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Inside his cell, Wilkins paced uncontrollably. He just couldn't fully grasp exactly what the Turners saw in Jack Sparrow. After all, he was a man who had caused the British Royal Navy much trouble over the past few years, as well as the Turners, so why were they helping him?

But before Wilkins was able to dwell on this subject longer, Sykes spoke up. "What do you think the chances are that we'll see the Turners alive again?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, isn't it painfully obvious that Blackbeard took them away to be executed? I've heard about the methods Blackbeard uses against his victims...and it seems they have no hope."

"But I've heard the stories of Sparrow's past escapades with the Turners. If they can survive cursed pirates, sea monsters, and Davy Jones, then I must admit that I have supreme confidence in the Turners and even Sparrow to defeat Edward Teach."

"I just hope you're right, Admiral," replied Sykes. "And God be with them."

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As the longboats gently floated along the curving path that led to the center of the Execution Cave, Jack, Will and Elizabeth took in their surroundings. Torches stuffed into their iron resting places lighted the compressed area, giving the location the appearance of a pathway to Hell itself. Wind blowing in from the entrance soon became what sounded like howls of pain that were coming from the many poor souls who had met their doom in this godforsaken place. The orange light emanating from each flame caused the water to look as black as the night. Aside from the eerie wind, the only other noise filling each person's ears was the sound of the water gently hitting the wooden structures breaking the smooth surface of the wet blanket.

As soon as the first longboat collided with land, Blackbeard swung his massive right foot over the edge and onto the sturdy surface. He was followed by two of his men, who were dragging Will and Jack in tow. After a few seconds, Elizabeth was brought up to join them and Blackbeard turned on his heel.

Behind him were many small spits of land that were connected by narrow walkways of stone that were wide enough for one person to cross at a time; islands and walkways much similar to those found inside the treasure cave on Isla De Muerta. And of course, a feeling of deja vu soon invaded Jack, Will and Elizabeth's senses; the only thing that kept this cave from being an exact duplicate of the Isla De Muerta cave were the mounds of treasure and valuable items that were noticeably absent.

In the center of the cave was a raised platform carved into the middle of a decidedly larger island. Stone steps were crudely carved out of the stone, allowing access to the top of the platform. The top of the platform was considerably spacious as well, with room for about three people on it. And like the cave on Isla De Muerta, shafts were cut into the roof to provide light inside the ominous space.

Blackbeard grinned. "From your expressions, I can guess exactly how you feel at the moment...frightened, depressed, and hopeless. So, who shall we start with?" He let his eyes wander over the threesome; Gibbs was still being held in a longboat. At last, Blackbeard's eyes came to rest upon Jack. "Let's start with the good old Captain, shall we?"

He nodded to a guard, who took it upon himself to forcefully grab Jack by the arm and haul him onto the main platform, right on the heels of Blackbeard.

As this happened, Elizabeth slightly turned her head to look at Will. Will caught her gaze and nodded, as he slipped his fingers over the dagger's hilt and expertly moved it so that the blade was standing up. Then, Will inconspicuously began working on trying to break free of his bonds. He glanced at the guard who was currently holding his arm, and was relieved to see that the henchman was too busy looking on in pleasure at Jack to notice Will's actions. As Will continued with his discreet rope-tearing, he shot a glance at Jack, who had reached the top of the platform and was now having his head placed on a small stone slab. At the same time, Blackbeard lifted a menacing ax that was resting against the slab, bringing it up to eye level. On the dull metal were stains of dried and crusted blood from every previous victim. Blackbeard then bent down and whispered something into Jack's ear that was inaudible to Will. The villain stood back up, testing the ax with a few simple swings.

Will began to work more furiously at his task, and at last, the first rope snapped in two. Will next poured energy into cutting the second bond as Blackbeard brought the sharp ax to a rest directly above Jack's exposed neck. Will sawed harder and the last rope finally broke.

What happened next transpired so fast that even Will wasn't sure exactly how it played out. The instant his hands were free, Will gripped the dagger more firmly and plunged it deep into his captor's chest. At the same time, Will whipped the brute's sword from its sheath and ripped the dagger out of his body, causing the bleeding pirate to tumble backwards into the icy water.

The action caused everyone else to look up in surprise and the guard holding Elizabeth immediately leapt towards Will, but Will brought him down with one quick swipe that slit the marauder's throat. Will then ran over to Elizabeth and cut her bonds with one swipe. He handed her the sword that belonged to the fallen pirate before jumping into the longboat Gibbs was being held in and destroyed his bonds as well. A split second later, Will elbowed the guard in the longboat full-on in the face as he grabbed that man's sword in the same fashion. Once Gibbs was properly armed, both him and Will leapt back onto the stone ground and engaged the rest of Blackbeard's men in battle.

Meanwhile, whilst Blackbeard and the other guard were distracted by the commotion below them, Jack grinned as he kicked the guard's legs out from under him and with his untied hands, stole the brute's blade. Blackbeard immediately noticed what happened and whipped out his sword and swung at Jack in one fluid motion. Jack dodged the attack with ease and without hesitation, he darted down the stone steps. Face contorted in anger, Blackbeard growled in frustration through gritted teeth and jumped down from his perch, meeting Jack at the bottom of the steps.

"Don't even try it, Sparrow," said Blackbeard.

"Too late, mate. I already am."

Both Jack and Blackbeard then brought their metal blades against one another at the same time, beginning their duel to the death.

A short distance away, Will and Elizabeth dueled Blackbeard's men with lightning-fast agility. The couple swung their blades fiercely from one enemy to the other. Will advanced forward continuously while he matched his opponent's moves until he had forced him to the edge of the stone. Will smirked as he kicked the pirate hard in the chest and the plunderer fell back into the water with a big splash. Will grinned and turned to come face-to-face with his next adversary. He began the usual forceful lunges and dodges, spins, etc. until he finally knocked the pillager unconscious with the hilt of his sword.

While Will was busy with his work, Elizabeth was burning through her opponents at a nice pace. She twisted and turned, knocking each blade away with little effort. With one forceful swing, she managed to create a domino effect, knocking out three consecutive pirates. However, one behind her threw his whip at Elizabeth's arm, and it wrapped itself around the flesh. The pirate then pulled Elizabeth to him, bringing his blade up to eye level.

"Have anymore tricks, poppet?"

"How about this one?"

Elizabeth kneed her opponent forcefully in the groin and then elbowed him in the cheek; he went down hard.

Elizabeth smiled. "I think that's rather good."

She rejoined the battle, alongside Will.

Jack and Blackbeard poured their sweat and blood into their fight, each lunging and stepping back in turn. As Jack landed his latest blow, the blade managed to cut into the fabric of Blackbeard's hat. The top of the hat fluttered away. Blackbeard lunged forward angrily, but Jack sidestepped him and swiped at the villain's back the first moment he could. The blow seemed to have penetrated the skin, as Jack's blade was now stained with a thin line of fresh blood. As Blackbeard roared, Jack retreated to Will and Elizabeth.

At that precise moment, Will's new opponent kicked his legs out from under him, causing Will to topple backwards. The pirate flipped his sword in midair and caught it by the hilt, blade pointed directly at Will's heart. But just as the brute was about to plunge his sword into Will's chest, the paddle of a wooden oar collided with his chest, then his face. As if that weren't enough, the paddle next hit the pirate in the back of his head. After the assault was over, the brute fell to the ground just as Will rolled away.

Will looked up to see Elizabeth standing there, oar firmly grasped in both of her hands. She helped Will to his feet before they shared a passionate kiss. When they pulled away, Will grinned at his wife.

"Not too bad," he commented.

"Thanks," Elizabeth smiled in return.

Just then, Jack came rushing up beside them, sword drawn. "Into the longboats," he commanded.

"But..." Elizabeth began to protest, but Jack cut her off.

"No time for arguing, just do it."

But before anyone could make a move for the longboats, the four of them were immediately bombarded by Blackbeard's men. Jack glanced at the oar in Elizabeth's hands and snatched it away.

"Thanks, luv."

Jack used the oar as a weapon, bringing the paddle against every pirate's head and cheek. Once every opponent had fallen to the ground, Jack couldn't help but raise the oar in triumph.

"I win!" he declared.

His eyes then spotted Blackbeard, who was racing as fast as he could towards Jack. Jack let out a fearful noise and jumped into the longboat along with his friends.

"Time to go!" he shouted.

Will then cut the rope that was keeping the boat moored to the land and the boat began to float away, but very slowly. Jack glanced around to see what was weighing them down, and saw the treasure chest. Exhaling deeply, Jack grabbed the chest and heaved it over the side, causing the Bermudan Treasure to sink down into the depths below. The action was followed by Blackbeard's roar of anger.

"Jack!" Gibbs exclaimed. "The treasure!"

"It's only gold, mate. No treasure is more valuable than a human life."

Will and Elizabeth gave Jack approving gazes while Gibbs merely nodded in silent understanding. Jack then called out to Blackbeard.

"Hey, Eddie! This is the day that you'll always remember as the day that you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow!"

As the longboat sailed away, Blackbeard could do nothing except stare in mute anger. At his feet, his men began to stir.

"Get up, you pathetic meatsacks," he spat. "And prepare _The Destroyer_. It's high time we send Sparrow's beloved Black Pearl to the depths."


	22. The Black Pearl Vs The Destroyer

Chapter 22

Once outside, Jack and his three comrades hopped out of the longboat the moment the tip of it made contact with land, swords still drawn and at the ready. Jack wheeled around and saw the other longboats racing towards them.

"Run! We're not in the clear yet!"

Jack sped away at a breakneck pace with Will, Elizabeth and Gibbs on his heels.

"Jack, wait!" Will called out as he finally managed to come up beside Jack. "Why are we hurrying away? Remember what Tia Dalma said? Once we've uncovered the treasure, we'll be protected from the dangers here!"

"We'll be protected as long as the treasure is in our possession, which it's not. So what purpose can be served in acting under a false assumption such as believing we have the magical protection of a vast treasure, which we don't have, as if we do have it? Savvy?"

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As Jack, Will, Elizabeth, and Gibbs were sprinting towards the Bermudan Prison, Blackbeard and his crew came out of the cave and watched them go.

"Damn them," growled Blackbeard. "They're going to free the prisoners and then attempt to sail away to freedom."

"What do you propose we do?" asked a nearby crewmate.

Blackbeard grinned ruthlessly. "Let's awaken a dormant volcano."

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The crew of four arrived outside the Bermudan Prison and met two guards posted inside at the gate. Jack swiftly lifted his blade to the nearest's throat.

"Would you be so kind as to lift this barrier?" Jack asked in a calm tone.

The other guard immediately obliged, pulling back the heavy lever on the opposite side of the gate. Once there was enough space to get inside, Jack and the others ran in.

"Thanks. You're a diamond, mate." Jack smiled politely at the guard before abruptly landing the hilt of his sword against the pirate's temple; the guard slumped to the ground in a crumpled heap. Will then took it upon himself to do the same by knocking the second guard unconscious merely seconds later. Next, Jack retrieved the keys hanging from the first guard's belt and raced over towards the cell currently holding the rest of his crew. Once the steel door had been pulled open, everyone bounded for the exit; Gibbs accompanied them and called out to Jack.

"We'll get a head start and prepare the Pearl for departure! I trust you won't be far behind?"

"Not at all, go ahead!"

Gibbs nodded before running away. Jack then went about unlocking the rest of the cells, which allowed the grateful prisoners to escape without so much as a second thought. As Jack came to his last cell, however, a voice called out his name.

"Jack Sparrow!" The call had originated from within the cell.

Jack curiously glanced up to look into the eyes of a haggard man whose clothes were dirty and torn, and his eyes wide as saucers. "Do I know you?" he asked the prisoner.

"No, but I know you. Allow me to introduce myself, Admiral Nathaniel Wilkins of the British Royal Navy."

"Oh, bugger!" Jack left the rusted key that he was grasping between his fingers suspended before the keyhole. "Someone like you is the last thing I need at the moment. You see. I'm pretty busy."

"I can see that. Now, free us."

"Why?"

"Because we came here to arrest you."

"Sure, that's incentive enough for me. I'm currently in the middle of a strategy that may grant me victory over the infamous Blackbeard...perhaps you've heard of him?"

Before Wilkins could retort, Will interjected. "Jack," he began, "we don't have the luxury of time. Wilkins," he addressed the Admiral, "we'll be back for you in due time. Right now, we have a pirate to defeat."

Will and Elizabeth raced outside, leaving Jack alone with Wilkins and his men. "You heard the Governor's son-in-law, we'll be back for you later."

With that, Jack raced outside to join Will and Elizabeth.

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Outside, once again, the trio made a break for their ship. However, a sudden violent rumble beneath their feet caused them to halt in their tracks. They curiously turned around and saw something that caused them to become queasy inside. The top, or mouth, of the Bermudan Prison had a dangerous-looking orange-red substance bubbling at its edges; lava. And within minutes, the lava was sliding down the sides of the volcano at an alarming rate.

Without a word, Jack ran away, leaving Will and Elizabeth still standing in awe. The couple noticed this, and gave each other a worried look before promptly following suit.

They had not gotten far, however, as three of Blackbeard's men emerged out of nowhere, swords drawn and angry expressions etched on their faces; they had taken their demonic forms. Jack, Will and Elizabeth immediately unsheathed their blades and attacked their opposition.

Will managed to take down his adversary in three swift swipes of his sword, while it only took Elizabeth two. Both of them checked on Jack, then the status of the flowing lava. The fiery substance was sliding across the ground fast, and was only a few feet away now. Finally, Jack was able to defeat his current opponent and the monster was thrown away, landing on top of the lava. The wraith let out a loud scream of agony as the lava slowly consumed his body, along with the bodies of the other two dead henchmen.

Jack, Will, and Elizabeth resumed their sprint towards the shore, which was now a short distance away. After two painfully slow minutes, the thick green trees and bushes gave way to the sandy shore that was the trio's salvation. As they kept running towards the Black Pearl, Jack spoke up.

"You know how we were planning on returning to the prison to free that Admiral person? Forget that, we can't do it now." Jack indicated the thick ocean of lava behind them.

"Agreed," replied Will heavily.

Just then, they reached the ropes that were holding the Pearl to the shore. Once they had successfully made it onto the deck, members of the crew who were waiting with swords and axes severed the ropes with one powerful swing each. The gusts of wind in the crisp air caught the sails, causing the Pearl to depart from the shore quickly. And not a moment too soon, because the instant the ship had left land, a torrent of lava came to rest right where the edge of the Black Pearl had been only moments before.

Jack, Will and Elizabeth slumped against the rail and breathed deep sighs of relief each. They were safe...for the moment.

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While everyone aboard the Black Pearl caught their breath, a massive pirate ship shot out of a large crack within the seabed, furiously working hard to break the barrier of ocean that was right beside the Pearl...

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A sudden noise caused every member of the Pearl crew to jump to their feet. What they saw caused their complexion to turn considerably pale: a pirate ship with the title _Destroyer_ painted in blood-red across the side. And standing right where everybody could clearly see him was Blackbeard, whose current expression was like snake venom.

Will turned to Jack. "I think we'd better run out the guns."

"I second that," replied Jack.

The rest of the crew went about their duties as Will an Elizabeth walked nearer to the opposite railing.

"Should we try and escape while we fight?" asked Elizabeth.

"No," said Will firmly. "We stay and see this through."

Just then, cannons emerged from the sides of both ships at the same time. For a few moments, each vessel held fire.

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On _The Destroyer_, Blackbeard turned to his first mate.

"Blast them to Hell."

The first mate grinned. "FIRE!!"

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"FIRE!!" Will shouted.

The deafening roar of cannonfire invaded everyone's ears as the round balls of metal were blasted from the cannons. Each iron weapon impacted each ship hard, tearing through the wooden barriers and sending shrapnel flying into the ocean. Other cannonballs blasted apart glass windows, lantern holders, etc. Some members of Blackbeard's crew were unfortunate enough to be in the path of the deadly cannons, and were blasted away the moment the metal balls came into contact with their bodies.

Just then, gunfire erupted from the railings of _The Destroyer_, causing members of Jack's crew who were present aboard the deck to duck for cover. From their safe point on the deck, Will called out to Jack, "We need weapons and ammunition!"

Jack nodded and moments later, crates containing rifles and pistols were hauled on deck and cracked open. Will helped Jack pass them out, along with extra ammunition, to each person. Once everyone had a weapon, they loaded their guns and slunk their way towards the railing and carefully poked their heads and guns out from the cover and took aim. Once clear shots were within their range, everyone pulled the trigger of their rifles and pistols.

Across from them, enemies jolted backwards and disappeared from view. Within minutes, the line of opposition had been defeated, but explosions still rang out around them. As Will ducked down to reload, he peered over his shoulder and spotted two of Blackbeard's men hauling barrels of gunpowder across their deck. Immediately, a sudden idea formulated inside Will's head. He promptly reloaded his rifle and took careful aim, the Pearl's cannonfire still persisting.

As Will closed his left eye while still keeping his right open for his looming shot, he waited for a barrel of gunpowder to come into his range. Will knew that since _The Destroyer_ had suffered enough damage from all the cannonfire, an explosion would finish their job for them. At last, Will spotted a barrel and reaffirmed his grip on the rifle with his sweaty palms.

When he was satisfied with his aim, Will squeezed his finger over the trigger. The bullet seemed to exit the rifle in slow motion as it shot out of the hole and glided across the space between the ships until finally, it impacted the gunpowder barrel.

Soon, _The Destroyer_ became engulfed with flames as an explosion rang out, sending charred and shattered pieces of wood flying into the open air. The flaming vessel soon began to sink down into the depths below, never to be seen again.

Will soon came to the conclusion that there must have been more than one barrel of gunpowder present on the main deck when he had fired off the shot, causing a chain reaction of explosions. But before Will could dwell on that fact too long, yells of triumph soon filled the air and Will was knocked on his back as Elizabeth threw her arms around him, smothering him with proud hugs and kisses.

Jack stood above them, grinning madly. "Not too shabby, mate," he commended Will.

"Thanks," Will grinned as he pulled both Elizabeth and himself to their feet.

But as quickly as the celebration had started, it went away even faster. Only seconds later, monsters materialized on the deck of the Black Pearl, each emanating fierce anger. One of them, Blackbeard in his frightful transformation, stepped forward. He spoke in a deep, nightmarish voice.

"You can't beat us that easily, I'm afraid."

Cruel laughter escaped each creature's mouth, a taunting insult in its own way. Blackbeard the monster drew his massive and bloodstained blade.

"Let's settle this like civilized pirates."


	23. Final Showdown

Chapter 23

Madness could be the only word used to describe what was currently transpiring onboard the Black Pearl. It was an epic battle; and yet, it was able to occur on the confined space of a ship in the ocean. Pirates, good and bad, were struggling with one another, each trying to gain the upper hand in their duel.

Will was furiously working his blade by thrusting it in every direction he could; his opponent managed to block every single one of them. Will spun in a full circle, bringing his blade up to head level, and it clanged loudly with his adversary's, which was anticipating the blow. Thinking fast, Will lunged forward while tossing the blade into his other hand. The change had just the effect Will was hoping for, as the pirate desperately attempted to stab Will, but received a blade through his heart instead. Will removed his sword from the pirate's chest and continued on.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth was dueling a worthy opponent. Even though she employed every tactic that she had learned over the years during the dueling sessions with Will, her current enemy could not be fazed. Elizabeth finally made a quick decision and dived in between her opponent's legs, coming up behind him. As the pirate looked around the deck in confusion, Elizabeth plunged her sword deep into the brute's back until the tip was protruding from his chest. Satisfied, Elizabeth yanked the blade out, wiping the fresh, dripping blood from the metal. She looked down at the fresh corpse in disgust.

"_Never _disrespect a woman," she sneered.

She turned to see another monster racing towards her. She made to run in order to get better ground when her foot caught on something, causing her to fall to the deck. Elizabeth's sword skittered away out of her reach. She looked back to see what had caused her to trip, and saw a rifle laying across the wooden ground. Elizabeth attempted to grab it, but a meaty hand grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her to her feet. All too soon, a sharp blade was at her throat and a rough voice in her ear.

"I'm going to finish what my friends started," growled the scraggly voice.

As another hand slipped down the back of her pants and began to pinch and squeeze, Elizabeth slid her foot under the rifle. While she got a better vantage point, the pirate started to pull the fabric off of Elizabeth's hips. Right before her pants were pulled down, Elizabeth flipped the rifle up into the air and caught it. She then slammed the butt of it hard into the monster's groin before turning around and slamming it into his face. Elizabeth then stabbed the sick beast in the heart. Next, Elizabeth pulled her pants all the way up and scanned the area of the ship.

Elizabeth spied three of the creatures scaling the ropes of the rigging. Making sure that there was a shot already in the rifle, she cocked the hammer and fired. The first wraith fell to the deck, dead. Elizabeth reloaded and aimed at the second's arm and fired again. The bullet caused the monster to sway and swing. Elizabeth smirked as she whipped out her pistol and fired off yet another shot. This one landed in the center of the red ruby that was planted in the middle of the pirate's necklace. Red light enveloped the beast and ate away at what could be called his flesh until a skeleton remained and plummeted to the deck and shattered.

That caused a spark to go off inside Elizabeth's head, and she ran to find Will.

Jack and Blackbeard were weaving their way in and out of the other dueling pirates as they kept focus on their fight. Each blade was a blur as their arms flailed about. Blackbeard knocked Jack down hard to the deck and prepared to go in for the final kill. But Jack was on top of things, as usual, and he jammed his foot into Blackbeard's face. Blackbeard staggered back a few paces, allowing Jack to jump to his feet. He ran up the stairs to where the mast wheel was, Blackbeard hot on his heels. Jack thought fast and spun the wheel just as Blackbeard lunged for him; each handle caught Blackbeard's chin until he staggered back. Next, Jack re-engaged Blackbeard in battle.

As Elizabeth ran up to Will, she sliced his current opponent in the side and punched him in the face.

"Will!" she said. "I know how to permanently kill Blackbeard and his men!"

"How?" Will inquired curiously.

Elizabeth relayed what had just happened, and moments later, they were both back into the action with a brand-new strategy.

At that time, Jack leapt towards the rigging and grabbed it. He then turned around and continued his spar with Blackbeard. Jack kicked Blackbeard again and began to climb higher. Below him, Blackbeard shook his head and started to climb up after Jack.

A gunshot rang precariously close to Will and he spun on his heel to see one of Blackbeard's monsters holding a smoking pistol. Will ripped a hatchet from his belt and took careful aim before hurling it. The ax hit the pirate's medallion square in the center and the villain soon evaporated, bones being the only thing that was left behind. All of a sudden, another wraith hopped onto Will's back, slamming his disfigured fists into Will's shoulders and chest. Will struggled against the beast, walking backwards toward the ship's railing. Once there, Will threw the beast off his back and sent him tumbling down into the icy depths. Far from tired, Will joined Elizabeth in her battle against two more unmerciful demons.

Meanwhile, Jack and Blackbeard were exchanging sword blows in the rigging of the Black Pearl. Jack's latest swing managed to slice some rope that Blackbeard was holding on to, causing the massive captain to sag a bit in his current placement. Outraged, Blackbeard thrust his blade towards Jack's chest, but Jack caught it. The two adversaries began to struggle.

"I'm going to carve out your heart and feed it to the sharks," threatened Blackbeard.

"You'll try," Jack retorted snidely.

Down on the deck, Will and Elizabeth were finishing off what remained of Blackbeard's minions. Will was using his trusty sword, while Elizabeth was using an empty rifle as her weapon of choice. Elizabeth parried each sword blow that was directed at her with the sturdy gun using little effort. She swung the weapon under someone's feet, and then smashed their medallion an instant later. Elizabeth wheeled around to come face-to-face with a loaded pistol. Elizabeth couldn't help but freeze on he spot. The possessor of the gun smirked viciously as he prepared to fire.

But suddenly, the hilt of a sword came swinging down and impacted hard against the pirate's ugly head. Will stood over the unconscious marauder and smirked before rolling the body over with his foot, proceeding to smash the medallion with the heel of his boot.

Will and Elizabeth glanced around the deck; not one of Blackbeard's henchman had been left alive. They then looked up to see Jack struggling with Blackbeard as the heartless monster attempted to bring his blade down into Jack's chest.

"Jack!" Will called out.

Jack seemed to hear Will, as he slightly glanced down at him.

"Destroy his medallion!"

Jack looked at the medallion dangling from Blackbeard's neck and nodded. Jack summoned all the strength he could and finally was able to smash the hilt of Blackbeard's sword against his face. Jack took the opportunity and whipped out his pistol with his free hand while maintaining a firm grip on his sword with the other. With the sword, Jack cut away enough rigging so that Blackbeard was dangling above the deck by one foot. Blackbeard dropped his own sword and was now defenseless.

"And so it ends," grinned Jack.

Jack then shot Blackbeard's medallion right in the center, the force of impact causing Blackbeard to lose his grip on the rigging and go plummeting down to the deck as his discolored flesh was slowly eaten away graphically.

Elizabeth couldn't bare to watch this time and she buried her face against Will's shoulder as Blackbeard's bare skeleton shattered upon slamming into the wooden deck of the Black Pearl. Dead silence followed as Jack jumped down onto the deck.

'I'd say that was rather fun, wouldn't you?" Jack asked sarcastically.

"Shut it," said Elizabeth.

More silence ensued, which Will broke after a minute.

"Listen," he said, grabbing Elizabeth's hand, "Elizabeth and me are pretty worn out from all this. We're going down to our quarters to rest."

With that, the couple disappeared below deck, almost eagerly. Jack shook it off and went to find his father, who was currently nursing his wounded arm. Jack looked at it in surprise.

"When were you shot?"

"Yesterday. I'm fine. Listen, Jack, I'm getting pretty old and stuff like this only wears me out more these days. So, I've been doing some thinking, and I've come to the conclusion to retire from active plundering effective immediately."

Jack gazed at his father a few more moments before giving his answer. "Alright," he said. "If that's how you feel, then I won't stop you. Where can we drop you off?"

"Well, after we take Will and Elizabeth home, you can take me by the Pirates Council. Perhaps they can get me a permanent position there."

Jack nodded and began to tend to James' wound.


	24. Fiery Passion

Chapter 24

The door to Will and Elizabeth's private quarters swung open, allowing the madly kissing couple to stumble inside. Will then quickly shut the door and bolted it tight; he went back to his loving wife. Both Will and Elizabeth began to undo the buttons on each other's clothes. Elizabeth managed to get Will's shirt off first and she tossed it on the floor. In turn, Will slid Elizabeth's shirt off, both of them now topless. As Will and Elizabeth once again smothered each other with passionate kisses, they each unbuttoned the other's pants until they too were off.

Without a word, they both made their way to their bed and toppled down onto it. Will was on top, and he trailed kisses all the way down Elizabeth's bare body; from her neck, to her stomach, and her legs.

Elizabeth gracefully grabbed Will's head and brought his face to rest in between her breasts; Elizabeth breathing in pleasure. Next, Will assumed his position and kissed Elizabeth as hard as he could before gesticulating both their hips repeatedly. He continued with that for a few more minutes until they were both exhausted

After that Will and Elizabeth fell asleep in each other's arms.

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**_JACK, WILL AND ELIZABETH WILL RETURN IN_**

**_"PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE AMULET OF ATLANTIS"_**

**_COMING SOON!_**


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